The building in which the nursery is based is also due to be sold in April 2014, prompting the college directors to look at the viability of the nursery versus the college and its current aims and expansion plans.
According to Norland College, the nursery, which had been open for four years, has been operating at a loss and in the current climate is no longer viable.
From September, the college will be delivering a new three-year BA (Hons) Degree in Early Years Studies, the number of students will be increasing and a significant investment is being made to modernise and extend its existing premises.
All 19 staff at the 61-place day nursery will be offered redundancy pay and made aware of the current vacancies at the college.
Norland College has also committed to helping parents with children at the nursery find alternative childcare.
Last year, the nursery, rated good by Ofsted, was named joint winner of Nursery World’s Enabling Environments award. Manager Clare Crowther was also highly commended by judges in the nursery manager of the year category.
The college has said that the closure of the setting will not affect students who were offered placements at the nursery, as the opportunities for them to gain practical experience at the setting were limited.
This is because only members of the nursery staff were allowed 'hands on' contact with the children, which created a ‘fundamental conflict between excellent practice and the training of students’.
Liz Hunt, principal of Norland College, said, ‘We deeply regret the closure of the nursery. We are doing everything we can to ensure we help parents find alternative childcare, as well as helping our team of dedicated and highly professional staff find jobs elsewhere.’