IT is almost business as usual at Greenock's Glenpark Early Learning Centre - as over 60 little ones have been attending their hub each week.

The Madeira Street centre is acting as a hub for the children of frontline workers.

The little ones are enjoying taking part in lots of fun activities.

Staff have been working tirelessly to keep the two to five-year-olds in their normal routines.

As well as taking care of the little ones in person, they've been offering their support virtually.

Depute head of centre, Gaynor Wiggins, told the Tele: "We have just under 70 kids registered to attend the hub, with on average 35 to 40 coming along each day.

"A lot of the parents are care workers or they work in the NHS, so depending on their shifts some children can be here every day.

"Each child who attends usually comes to Glenpark, so it's less daunting as they already know all of the staff.

"We've split them into two 'bubbles' to ensure we follow Covid-19 guidelines and allow free-flow between inside and out to keep supporting the children's curriculum."

For those youngsters who are at home, the team of over 30 staff have been carrying out weekly check-in calls and offering access to both home learning packs and resources from within the centre.

Gaynor told the Tele: "We've got staff working on rotation and we've been recording videos of us singing, reading stories and doing yoga for the wee ones to do at home.

"On our weekly check-in calls, if parents or guardians mention that the children don't have access to particular resources, we'll arrange for them to come and pick up what they need.

"It's a strange time for us all but we've adapted very well as we learned from the first round of hubs.

"We feel really lucky to still be helping these local families."

Councillor Jim Clocherty, convener of education and communities, said: “I’d like to thank the staff at Glenpark and across all our childcare hubs for the first-class job they are doing looking after children of key workers and vulnerable young people during these difficult times.

"They are doing invaluable work in schools and at home to support children and families."