A new preschool set to open next January will help to alleviate some of the pressure on early childhood centres around the Upper Clutha.

Aspire Preschool and Nursery director Julian Springer told the Wānaka App 60 parents had pre-registered a child for the service within 10 days of its website going live. 

The new preschool, which will have a focus on low teacher-to-student ratios and getting kids school-ready, will be located at the former Little Wonders Wānaka site on Connor Street.

The original daycare closed last September with just a week’s notice, leaving parents scrambling to find suitable daycare in a town where waitlists of a year are not unusual.

Aspire Preschool and Nursery director Julian Springer and head teacher Anita Presbury. PHOTO: Wānaka App

Julian said the “huge” shortage of teachers was one of the key reasons Aspire Preschool and Nursery has such a long runway to opening.

“Technically we get the lease on July 1 but we have a 6-9 month strategy to recruit teachers because we know part of the reason Little Wonders closed was due to staffing,” he said.

Julian said he and head teacher Anita Presbury were looking as far away as the UK and South Africa for qualified teachers “to get the recruitment right”.

All but one of the half a dozen childcare centres the Wānaka App called on Friday had waitlists, with most of them described as long or very long.

The manager at one centre, who asked not to be named, said their waitlist was anywhere from three months to 18 months and “far beyond what we can take for the next year and a half”. 

The centre sometimes got calls from expecting parents before they had even shared the news of the pregnancy with immediate family, because they were so anxious to get on a waitlist, she said.

A handful of centres said it was difficult to give an accurate timeline for waitlists because many parents sign up for multiple waitlists to increase their chance of securing a spot.

This was challenging for the centres, but understandable due to the demands of returning to work and the shortage of childcare providers with capacity. 

Julian, a lawyer and father, said it was important to him that the new preschool provides the coverage working parents need.

It will be open 52 weeks a year with days from 7.30am to 5.30pm “and possibly later if we find we get feedback that parents would prefer us to be open later”.

He said the preschool planned to offer a point of difference by focusing on equipping children with the skills they need to enter primary school.

“We’re creating a service we think is pretty unique,” Julian said.

A ‘meet and greet’ event at Scroggin on August 14 will provide an opportunity for parents to learn more from Julian and Anita.

Anita, a local mother and teacher with experience in both early childhood centres and schools, said she was excited to be part of the new preschool.

“It aligns with my personal view on teaching and it’s an awesome opportunity,” Anita told the Wānaka App.

“We’re hoping to provide something for families down here which gives students a really good start to their education.”

PHOTO: Wānaka App