Agenda item

To consider an update on early years, childcare and education.

Ngozi Anuforo, Head of Strategic Commissioning for Early Help and Culture, reported on current issues affecting early years education and childcare in the borough.  Local provision was diverse.  The sector had remained stable and had not suffered many closures following Covid so far. There had been a greater reliance on childminders to provide the necessary provision in the earlier part of last year.

The Council had a statutory duty to ensure that there was enough childcare in the borough and required to undertake a childcare sufficiency assessment every three years, with an update provided to the Cabinet Member each year.  The impact of the pandemic on the sector had been huge.  During 2020, the importance of childcare provision had been highlighted through its prioritisation for re-opening.  Funding to local authorities for free early education had continued and this was expected to be passed on by the Council to providers in the sector.  Provision had continued to be available during the summer for children of key workers and of those who were vulnerable.  During the autumn, the expectation had been that all provision would be open but it was recognised that there were likely to be fewer children attending than normal due to parental concerns and the re-opening of schools.  A stocktake had been undertaken to gain an understanding of the impact of Covid on the sector and there was also an ongoing conversation taking place with providers.  It was known that there were less children participating in the free early education offer.   Providers had also highlighted a decrease in the demand for paid for provision.  It appeared that there had been a change in the profile and needs of parents and that greater flexibility was now required.

Many providers were concerned about the economic viability of their businesses.  They had needed to make adaptations in order ensure safety.  Their capacity had shrunk to meet social distancing requirements, which had a financial impact on them.  There had also been staffing impacts due to sickness, self-isolation or vulnerability.   Providers who were maintained or voluntary or community sector did not meet the necessary profile to access government support.  A number had needed to close for periods or reduce capacity and had struggled to find the resources to pay for agency staff.

Some parents were reluctant to take up nursery places and this was more common in the disadvantaged areas of the community so could therefore include some of the children that the Council most wanted to support.  There was a need to build confidence amongst parents and alleviate their fears.  Some parents were now asking for funded provision only and not paid for services. This was linked to changing work patterns, furlough and redundancies.   There was a particular challenge in provision for children with SEND, where there had been a significant reduction in access.  The Council was looking to increase SEND capacity across the borough.  There was a clear need for more flexible childcare to respond to changing work patterns. It was also important to gain an understanding of where the most vulnerable children in the borough were located.  There had been changes in demographics as well, which needed to be taken into consideration.  Work was planned to address the drop in participation levels and this would be particularly focussed on younger children, especially two year olds.  Targeted work was planned to support providers most at risk of failure.  This would look at their viability and stability as well as market model.  There was a specific need to ensure that there were sufficient places in area of deprivation.  Consideration would need to be given to how providers in such areas could best be supported, including access to government help.  There were two categories of provider where there were particular concerns:

·         There were three maintained nursery schools in the borough.  These were not funded in the same way as schools with nurseries and had been significantly impacted by Covid.  Details regarding the Department for Education’s long term funding plans for them were awaited; and

·         There were twelve community providers.  These tended to charge lower rates and attract a higher proportion of children taking up free provision.  They had suffered from limited access to government support.

Work would be undertaken with both of categories of providers to ensure that the Council was able to maintain a diverse range of provision.