TODDLERS in Stockton and their families will benefit from a £664,000 lottery grant to build and improve five nurseries.
The money is one grant in the £1.7m total across the country from the National Lottery's new opportunities fund, and is one of the biggest grants ever awarded under the neighbourhood nurseries programme.
It has been given to Stockton Council's Sure Start project and will see 340 new day-care places created in Stockton, Thornaby and Billingham.
Jill Anderson, head of services at Sure Start Stockton, said: "This exciting news provides us with an opportunity to develop our programme. It will provide five new, much needed nurseries which will be available to parents from next April."
Dave Adams, strategic services manager, said the investment would benefit people in the wards of Roseworth, Milehouse, Portrack and Tilery, Victoria, St Aidan's and Stainsby, where the nurseries and support services would be created.
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