As day care nursery close without warning
Hundreds of families have been left without childcare after Happy Times closed without warning.
The chain of nurseries, that had branches in Hammersmith, Fulham, Barnes and Battersea, gave more than 70 members of staff an hour’s notice that they were losing their jobs on Friday 28th November.
Parents were informed of the closure by staff when they arrived to pick up their children.
The chain, which charged over £1,000 a month in fees, has been in financial trouble for some time. In 2006 the Ravenscourt branch situated in Hammersmith Hospital, was closed after the NHS Trust terminated the lease citing ‘persistent late payment of rent’ as their reason.
Happy Times have made no comment on the closure to the media but issued a statement on their website saying: “It is with regret that we hereby notifiy (sic) you that Happy Times nurseries closed for the last time on 28th November 2008 at 6.30pm.”
December 11, 2008