A NEW nursery has been opened in Wimborne to help with demand in the area. 

Owner of Nemo's Nursey and Pre-School in Canford Cliffs, Claire Hartwell, 50, has opened a brand new nursery, Happy Feet Nursery, in Wimborne. 

Mum-of-two Claire decided to take on the new challenge after seeing the demand for childcare in the area. 

She said: "The demand for childcare at the moment is just huge. Less and less people have been able to stay at home and be stay-at-home mums. 

"Our waiting list at Nemo's is until 2027."

Hoping to help working parents, Claire has completely renovated an old showroom into a nursery which aims to embrace the outdoors.

Now with 14 years in the industry, she hopes to use her experience to bring a 'warm and engaging' environment. 

She said: "I just love the openness of it, it's very European and we have sliding doors as I wanted to embrace the outside and inside free flow for children to help with their independence. 

"It's all wooden toys that have been chosen particularly and there's a purpose to everything."

Happy Feet has also partnered with Joey's Family Food for meals and will offer yoga for children. 

Asked about the importance of yoga for children, Claire said it allows carers to see children's physical progression and work with them to make sure they are on the right path. 

Claire said: "We have to look out for things and make sure that children develop as they should. 

"Sometimes if they're doing yoga and they're not quite moving as we'd expect for their age, it's a great opportunity for us to see how to help. You'd be surprised how into the kids get too."

A new challenge for Claire, she decided to take it on as her children have grown up meaning that 'they don't need mum around so much'. 

The new nursery has had 17 appointments in one week already and Claire said the new nursery is part of a wider plan to open more in the future.