A caring corner where children come to play

GINGERBREAD Corner is one of Croydon's most respected children's centres.

When our photographer Grant Melton visited last week, the children were busy amusing themselves with everything from ping pong to driving toy cars.

BIG FAMILY: Gingerbread Corner Children's Centre's playground is a fantastic facility for young people Photo No: CRGM20110729B-012 by Grant Melton
FANCY A GAME?: Tobi and Kaeden prepare to play some table tennis
PLAY TIME: Kaizar shows off some of the children's centre's outdoor play equipment CRGM20110729B-006_C
LEARNER DRIVER: Anaiyah goes for a ride round the playground
EXCITING DISCOVERY: Children show off a worm they found in the garden to staff member Natasha Photo No: CRGM20110729B-019 by Grant Melton
PEEK-A-BOO: James and Justin play under the watchful eye of Marie CRGM20110729B-007
WHAT NEXT? Justin wonders what he's going to play with next CRGM20110729B

Chief executive Sue Moses tells us about the history of the centre and what makes it so special.

Tell us about this history of the centre.

Gingerbread Corner was born in 1976, to provide after-school care for children with working lone parents.

It started off in a big old house, now the site of the Croydon Park Hotel, looking after just 16 children.

In 1984 we started a full-time nursery, and Gingerbread Corner now provides year-round care for children aged three months to 11 years.

In 2008 we were designated to provide children's centre services.

What services do you offer?

We have a nursery divided into three rooms, for babies, toddlers and preschoolers.

We also provide a breakfast club, delivering around 35 children to their primary school, and we pick up 80 children in the afternoons in a fleet of four vehicles.

Each week we also run two Stay and Play sessions as well as offering parental support, life coaching and psychotherapy.

What makes the centre special?

Gingerbread Corner is a charity and we ensure that our fees are affordable even to those on the lowest incomes. We believe in providing an inclusive service not just for clients but also for employees and don't turn people away on the grounds of additional special needs.

What's your biggest recent achievement?

In a recent survey of our parents, 100 per cent of the responses indicated they were very happy or satisfied with our services.

What does the future hold for the centre?

In order to be less reliant on local authority funding we are setting up the Rainbow Preschool, which will run during term time from 9.30am to 12.30pm every morning for children aged three to four.

This will be free to parents as it will be funded by government grants, and opens on September 12.

For more information about the preschool, visit www.gingerbread corner.co.uk or call 020 8683 3322.