The Rooms: The Kitchen
Refurbished September 2010
For the first six years we owned the Nursery years we knew that at some point we would have to refurbish the kitchen. Unfortunately many years of neglect meant that the woodblock floor was rotting under the vinyl, tiles were falling off the wall and old lead, (unused!), and cast iron pipes meant that everything had to be ripped out and started from scratch.
Planning began in 2009 and the date of 3rd September was set. The next 8 months were taken up in planning, replanning, finding contractors, getting quotes, choosing equipment and making sure we had it all planned down to the last lick of paint. An original budget was set, adjusted, torn up, replanned and finally set at a maximum Ian would not go above! (Well not by much really....!)
Very little was late during the refurbishment, probably because Ian was always nagging everyone and some very late nights were worked - sometimes we even had midnight finishes and meals eaten in Pre School by those working late. Sheila was chief meal and tea maker during those times and we would not have been able to work so late without the 1000's of cups of tea and coffee we drank.
Disruption to the Nursery was kept to a minimum and Pre School enjoyed their time across the road in the Village Hall in the mornings. All the staff worked hard to solve all of the problems thrown up by the refurbishment and the move into the village hall for Sam and Bev.
We started out with a two week plan to do the whole job and not only did we finish the job on time but it looks like it even came in under budget. The smile on Bev and Sam's face made it all worthwhile - they loved their new kitchen.
None of this would have been possible without all the skills and fortitude of the Contractors. They all worked wonders to solve all the problems thrown up during the project. Thank you everyone:
Ripping out, pouring floor, plasterboarding and general handyman
- Jo Eccleston
Drains - Darren Whitby
Cladding - Dave Orton and crew from DMO Home Improvements
Kitchen Units and Cooker Hood - Geoff and team at Progressive Catering Equipment
Flooring - Rob at Ashby Carpets
Electrics - Dave and Steve from Demtech Electrical
Plumbing - Darren Butcher
Decorating - John and Johnny Sparks
Bev and Sam - overseers, cleaners and moving in (with help from Simon, Sheila and Karen)
Finally I did help a little bit - honest!
Ian
Stop Press! - April '11
Environmental Health came and inspected the kitchen and were so impressed that they wanted to know who the suppliers were. 5 Stars and a comment that it was the best ever kitchen he had seen made Bev and Sam glow. This was a huge justification of what we had done and made the slog and the wait worthwhile. Well done Bev & Sam.
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