A PRE-SCHOOL in Rayleigh now has a permanent home after moving into a room at Edward Francis Primary School.

The Fairview Under Fives pre-school has been going for nearly 30 years, but had been renting a space in Fairview Park, which they were having to raise fundsfor to keep it in usable condition.

The volunteer group have around 20 children and now have a space they can call their own, storage facilities and an outside area.

Sarah Halloran volunteers at the group and her four-year-old son Samuel will be starting school at Edward Francis, in Uplands Park Road, later this year.

She said: “It’s fantastic to finally have a secure future and our own space.

“We have flexibility to do different things now we’re not sharing space.

“It’s brilliant for the kids as well. Some of them will attend Edward Francis, so they get to see all the children walking past in their uniform and get to hear the bell ring.”