Chichester childcare service closes after 12 years of caring for local families
A ‘home-from-home’ childcare service in Quarry Lane, Chichester, has closed its doors after 12 years, marking the end of an era for its owners and the many children and parents it has supported.
Kim Wood and Jennie Muir opened Quarry Lane Childcare in September 2014, offering wraparound care for children aged four to 11.
The idea came after the pair, who had worked together as teaching assistants, noticed a growing demand for childcare among local families.
Kim said: “Parents wanted more childcare and we saw that the need was there, so we decided to set up on our own.”
After being turned down by a number of locations that would not allow children on site, Kim’s husband built a cabin in the family’s back garden. This became the home of Quarry Lane Childcare.
Over the years, the service developed a reputation for its ‘home-from-home’ approach, allowing children to cook, create artwork, garden and play games.
The decision to close followed a difficult period for the business.
Last summer, Jennie suffered a serious accident where she fell and broke her elbow. With driving an essential part of their work collecting children from different schools, the owners were forced to scale back.
Jennie later required a further operation, making it difficult for her to continue carrying out her duties. The pair also felt the wraparound childcare industry was changing, with Kim describing it as “dying” in some respects.
Despite these challenges, Kim said she and Jennie “absolutely loved every minute of it,” not only supporting local families, but the wider community.
Before the pandemic, Quarry Lane Childcare would regularly welcome a group of elderly people from Grace Church through its doors. These visits would include an old-fashioned tea party, giving the children and older visitors an opportunity to spend time together.
Kim explained: “We thought: ‘We want to give something back to the community. We feel very lucky, very blessed to have this cabin, and we want to use it for helping others.’”
The service also supported a number of charities over the years. Each Christmas, the children were encouraged to help choose which causes Quarry Lane Childcare would support, with donations going to organisations including the Salvation Army, Stonepillow and UK Harvest.
As long-standing supporters of the local community, Kim and Jennie were given an emotional send-off by the families they served.
Parents organised a farewell picnic at Thomas Road Park, bringing together past and present children to mark the end of Quarry Lane Childcare.
For Kim, the closure is the end of a special period.
She said: “Whilst it’s very sad, we’re proud to have looked after your children for these years.
“We’ve had so many children through the doors, and it wasn’t just about supporting them - it was about supporting whole families.”
As the final chapter closes, the future of the cabin where it all began remains uncertain.
Kim said: “It’s the end of an era, and I’m not sure what our lovely cabin in the garden is going to be used for now.”