CROWDS turned out to celebrate a special Kendal nursery's 70th anniversary.

Former pupils, staff and governors attended two packed days of events at Brantfield Nursery.

Alyssa Dobbs, the nursery's new head teacher, said that the events were 'really special'.

"We had an absolutely fantastic turnout, despite the Kendal weather," she said. "The nursery is in a unique sort of setting and people have very fond memories of it."

The nursery opened on July 8,1946 as Kendal Nursery School in Abbot Hall House and then went on to operate out of Howard Hall on Milnthorpe Road before settling at Brantfield.

Friday's (July 8) event gave the nursery's pupils a chance to enjoy a slice of cake, whereas Saturday gave those with a long-standing connection to the nursery the opportunity to take a walk down memory lane.

Freda Dacre, who started working as a nursery nurse at the nursery in 1946 and spent more than 40 years there, attended Saturday's celebration.

"It was straight after the war and there wasn't a lot of jobs so if you got one then you clung on to it," said Miss Dacre, 89. "It was the children, though, that kept me there and I enjoyed it."

Karen Bradbury, the business manager at the nursery, said that it was 'lovely' to see Miss Dacre and other ex-staff at the event.

"Everybody was thrilled to see them and that really made the day to be honest," she said.

Although head teacher Ms Dobbs has only been working at the nursery since Easter this year, she said she thinks that it is a great place for children as well as a wonderful place to work.

"The staff are just absolutely fantastic," she said. "They are really hard working, the amount of extra hours people put in is amazing.

"It's got a magical garden and people remember it very fondly," she said. "I think that's what memories are made of - playing outside and making mud pies."

The nursery staff are also asking those with memories of Brantfield to visit or to email them with their stories, which they plan to collate in a special book. The nursery aims to put up a display and would be grateful of any photos they could use.