Glasgow nursery welcomes First Minister Nicola Sturgeon for renaming ceremony

Busy Bees Glasgow Heritage House, located on Albert Drive, welcomed the First Minister for an official ribbon cutting ceremony within her constituency to celebrate the renaming of the nursery and revamped outdoor spaces for the children.

The nursery, which was previously known as Glasgow Albert Drive, has returned to its former name of Glasgow Heritage House, a move welcomed by staff and families in the community who reference the much-loved nursery as Heritage House.

The Glasgow Southside MSP was shown around the nursery by Yvonne Smillie, managing director of Busy Bees Scotland, and the nursery team. She enjoyed a tour of the nursery and had the chance to observe exemplary practice within Scotland’s pre-school education system.

After spending time with the children and joining the pre-school children whilst engaging in fine motor development activities designed to engage their motor muscles in readiness for pencil work, the First Minister and nursery team discussed how the childcare sector is coming out of the pandemic and the important role the sector plays in supporting parents to return to work.

Following her visit to Busy Bees Glasgow Heritage House, Ms Sturgeon said: “It’s important that we ensure every child in Scotland receives the best start in life, and it was excellent to see how the Busy Bees team deliver that at this nursery.

“I have enjoyed previous visits to the nursery, and it was wonderful to see how much the nursery has evolved to ensure they continue to provide outstanding care and education for young children. It’s also extremely beneficial to learn about some of the difficulties faced by educators at the moment. It will certainly help us to improve and implement solutions for early years education moving forward.”

Ms Smillie added: “It was our pleasure to welcome First Minister Nicola Sturgeon back to our nursery. We’re grateful that she managed to fit us into her busy schedule, and we’re proud to have had the chance to show her around the nursery, explain how we offer an exemplary educational setting for our children, and discuss the challenges that our staff face, many of whom are constituents.

“As the UK’s biggest provider of early years education, it was also an important opportunity for us to explain the impact that the pandemic has had on our young children, and to ask for her support in helping to ensure that there is no long-term developmental impact on children who’ve spent much of their short lives under covid restrictions. As we learn to live with Covid, today’s ribbon cutting and the return to our much-loved name of Heritage House is a great way to mark today’s visit and the exciting times ahead for our children, families, and staff.”