Local pre-school gets facelift thanks to volunteers from A52 improvements team

Staff from National Highways and two of its contractors on parts of the A52 Nottingham Junctions improvement scheme, Griffiths Farrans Joint Venture and WSP, volunteered their time as part of a commitment to give back to the local community. 

Silverdale Pre-school approached the team after the community centre where it is based was used by National Highways to host some public information events about the project. 

National Highways Assistant Project Manager Nick Moczadlo, who was one of 13 people volunteering at the pre-school, said:  

“We know that our work to operate, maintain and improve roads makes a positive difference to people but we like to go beyond that which is why are committed to adding social value by giving back to local communities in the areas where we work. 

“We were delighted to help Silverdale Pre-School spruce up their playground. During the course of the day we sanded and painted an existing fence and added height to another to improve safety. We also rebuilt the children’s sandpit and repaired an outside tap. We hope the children enjoy the fruits of our labours.” 

Silverdale Pre-school Manager Elaine Hardy said: 

“We are absolutely delighted with the work that was done. It’s made a huge difference. The sandpit is so much better than we had before and it’s lovely to see the fence looking so colourful. We’d like to thank everyone who gave their time to transform our site. Everyone loves it.” 

Improvements were made to the A52/A453 Silverdale Roundabout last year as part of the wider A52 Nottingham Junctions scheme. The work involved widening the westbound entry to the roundabout, creating two lanes around the roundabout and installing part-time traffic lights to increase capacity and improve the flow of traffic. 

A local bus stop was repositioned, and the kerb raised to make it easier for passengers to get on and off. 

Other work has included improvements to the Stragglethorpe Road, Nottingham Road, Cropwell Road, and Bingham Road junctions around Radcliffe on Trent between 2017 and 2022, and the soon to be completed upgrade to the Gamston Roundabout. 

In January this year it was announced Griffiths Farrans Joint Venture (GFJV) will also design and construct the remaining two junctions that form part of the scheme at Nottingham Knight and Wheatcroft, with work expected to start in September 2024.   

Further details about the A52 Nottingham Junctions scheme can be found on the project webpage