Parents, friends and families turned out in force for the Big Diversity Lunch at the Quayside Nursery, University Campus Suffolk, on Sunday.

Organiser Rachel Bailey of the Quayside Nursery said it had been a great success.

“It was amazing and such great fun. We raised £600 for a charity, the Peppercorn Lodge, Ipswich, to help the young mums and their babies.

“We had a lot of parents and other people who came along. It was a great success and everybody seemed to enjoy it.”

The event was held in the nursery grounds and adjoining car park.

She added: “We had a wide range of stalls from local businesses, including Soul Food, who are keeping in touch with us.

“One of the grandparents did the Greek dancing for us and a friend of one of the parents brought a guitar and sang, which was very good.

“Wilson, who did Tai Chi, stayed with us for the whole event.

“It went so well we are also planning another event, a car boot sale, on Sunday August 4.”

The Quayside Nursery and Pre-School is based in a modern, purpose-built building on the former Suffolk College campus and with an on-site parking area and dropping off points.

The newly-refurbished outdoor areas include a wide range of play equipment and resources for learning such as musical stations, bird houses, science tables, planting areas, dens, boats and play houses. There is also a woodland garden.

Inside there are four separate rooms catering for specific age groups and a babies’ room for children aged from three months upwards. The nursery is open from Monday to Friday from 8am-6pm, with full-time and session care available. It is open for children up to five years old.

Pre-school children at Quayside begin the preparation for the move to ‘big school’ by being introduced to academic subjects like reading, writing, maths, science, art and PE.

The aim is for children to leave the nursery for school bursting with confidence, ready for next stage of their education.

School-leavers have a graduation day where they receive teddies, certificates and wear gowns for special photos and their parents are invited for a graduation tea.

Quayside Nursery is having an open day for parents on Friday, June 14. To find out more go to brighthorizons.co.uk