West Lothian Mum Urges More Specialist Nursery Places for Children

A mom in West Lothian wants more help for kids. Local leaders might close nine nurseries soon. The authority said this on February 10. They plan to close seven open nurseries in August and two closed nurseries may also shut down.

Council members claim nurseries aren’t full. Nurseries can hold over 6,814 children and have 2,000 more spaces than needed now. Nine nurseries face closure in March; these are located in Livingston, Armadale, and other towns. People are talking about this on social media.

Some residents want better funding for special needs places. Lisa Stevenson’s son has autism, and she hopes for more specialist places that would use extra space from closures. Her son needs proper support to do well.

Lisa also wants more spots in special schools. Kids needing special care shouldn’t go to mainstream schools because mainstream schools might lack care and support. Kids there may not reach their full potential, and some saved money should go to special places.

Lisa’s son got into a specialist nursery before. She said this helped him thrive later and he now attends a special school in Livingston. She says this needs to be available for more kids because not enough specialist nursery places exist now.

Lisa’s son truly thrived at his nursery because staff knew how to handle his meltdowns. Parents want confidence their kids get needed support and autism has a wide spectrum where kids have different needs. Her son gets what he needs to learn.

West Lothian Council spoke about specialist help. They have specialist nurseries at Beatlie School for kids with severe and complex needs. Council nurseries can help kids too as they support children with extra needs.

Nine nurseries might close in August 2025. Here is a list of these nurseries: Deans North Nursery School in Livingston, Fauldhouse Nursery Class, and Glenvue Nursery School in Livingston.

Ladywell Nursery School in Livingston, Linlithgow Bridge Nursery Class, and St Anthony’s Nursery Class in Armadale are also on the list. St Joseph’s Nursery Class in Whitburn, Bathgate West Nursery School (currently inactive), and Our Lady’s Nursery Class in Stoneyburn (also currently inactive) may close.