As part of the government’s Plan for Change, they will create 300 new or expanded nurseries on school grounds, coming to more than 7,000 places.
Unsworth Primary School on Blackley Close is one of the schools in the wider area set to provide extra places.
Following an initial £37m investment,189 of the 300 government-funded new or expanded nurseries will be up and running this month.
Lucy Smith, Labour and Co-operative Councillor for Besses Ward and deputy leader and cabinet member for children and young people, said: “It’s great the government are supporting more schools to open up new nursery places.
“School nurseries are just one of the many ways here in Bury we are improving our early years provision.
“We want to give every child the best start in life.
“Supporting families and getting children school ready is a crucial part of this.
“Under the previous government, funding and support just wasn’t there but now we have a chance to put back services that every community needs.”
The government will invite more schools to bid for up to £150,000 funding from a £45 million pot to create a further 300 new or expanded best start school-based nurseries from September next year.
The second phase of the scheme will prioritise bids from schools serving some of the most disadvantaged communities.
Christian Wakeford, MP for Bury South, said: “This Labour government making life easier for working parents by opening 300 new or expanded nurseries directly on primary school grounds, cutting down the school run and giving children a seamless start to their education.
“Meeting the latest milestone in its Plan for Change, this Labour government has confirmed over 4,000 extra school-based nursery places will be available across England this September, including here in Bury South at Unsworth Primary, as it vows to tackle childcare cold spots in the next phase of the rollout.
“Thanks to our initial investment of £37 million, new or expanded government-funded nurseries are up and running in the first week of the new term – with parents and children at Unsworth Primary School feeling the benefit.”
“As part of our drive to give every child the best start in life, this government has invited more primary schools to bid for up to £150,000 funding from a £45 million pot to create a further 300 new or expanded best start school-based nurseries – offering up to 7,000 more places – from September 2026.”
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Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson said: “The change we have delivered for working people this September is just the beginning – through our Plan for Change we are determined to give more children the best start in life.
“School-based nurseries can offer a nurturing and stable environment for children that carries through into primary, and a helping hand for working parents tackling dual drop off.
“Delivering more school-based nurseries – under our Best Start umbrella – means more choice and convenience for parents, and more opportunities to target parts of the country where families are most in need of additional support.
“Making life easier for parents under the pressures of the school run means they can keep working with confidence, earn more money and supporting wider economic growth, a priority in our Plan for Change.”
This comes the same week as the government has delivered 30 hours of free childcare from age nine months to reception year, with take-up expected to be over and above initial projections at over half a million children.