Project of the week

Caledon was a model village developed in the early 19th century around a large flour mill. By the 1880s, the mill had converted to wool production, and the flour storehouse became a wool store. Following the mill’s closure in 1931, the old wool store in the village centre later served as a mushroom farm; sadly, this use also failed in the 1970s, and the building fell vacant. 

Caledon Regeneration Partnership took on the restoration of the derelict wool store in 2018. Extensive community consultation showed a lack of local childcare was a key problem facing the village, with parents feeling forced to choose primary schools elsewhere that could provide after-school programming to enable them to work, threatening the local schools’ longevity.  

Today, The Woolstore Daycare is a bustling, beautiful childcare facility, with 21 workers caring for 96 children. Local parents have been supported to continue working or training while living in Caledon, and both local primary schools have seen increased enrolment, with their continuation now safeguarded.  

“We feel blessed to have been entrusted with this amazing building. We really appreciate the uniqueness of the space and its individuality. I remember walking past the building when it was derelict and to see it now, busy with little feet running around it, makes me proud to know that I am helping to shape the little minds of Caledon and surrounding areas.” 

Vicky Robb, The Woolstore Daycare