Calls for better support for childcare settings in Cornwall
It follows Prime Minister Rishi Sunak visiting Nanceldra Pre-School last week
Last updated 15th Feb 2024
There's calls for more support to better fund childcare settings in Cornwall.
A pre-school in West Cornwall warns there is not enough support for early years education settings. Nancledra Pre-School was visited by Prime Minister Rishi Sunak last week, to talk about funding for two year olds.
From April this year, working parents of two-year-olds will get 15 hours per week of funded childcare during term time. Children from nine months old will be included from September this year.
Hannah Ray, on the Advisory Board at Nancledra, spoke to us following the Prime Minister's visit on Wednesday 7 February.
She said: "It's a lot of work, it's hard work. They're barely paid, just over minimum wage.
"While the pre-school funding for two year olds is great, actually I feel it's a lot of the systems, the infrastructure, that's not there, particularly around the job market.
"It's really difficult to find pre-schools with space to take your child - but also you can't afford not to work."
"It's a catch-22 for a lot of working parents"
It comes as an open letter has been sent to Downing Street, signed by leading figures in the childcare industry, calling for urgent Government action
According to recent figures, 37% of parents are spending more than £200 a week on childcare, up from 29% in Jan last year and 70% of households say they’ve had at least one parent reduce working hours, start flexible working or stop working completely due to the high cost of childcare.
The new poll of parents has found widespread confusion and concern about the state and cost of pre-school childcare provision in England.
The government has described it as the "largest expansion in childcare in England’s history," and says they are: "ensuring working parents receive 30 hours of free childcare a week".
However, according to new research from Plum, the smart money app, the childcare system to deliver these changes looks to be heading in 'the wrong direction.' Figures from Ofsted show there were almost 5,000 fewer childcare providers at the end of March 2023 compared to the same time the year before.
The Institute for Fiscal Studies has warned that, despite an extra £400m for childcare, providers are actually facing a real-terms cut in their overall funding due to soaring costs. Parents are being charged more to cover the shortfall.
Childcare costs are continuing to rise, with almost 40% spending more than £200 a week, up from 29% in January 2023.
A quarter of parents (24%) said they’d seen nursery fees rise in the last year by up to 5%. Approaching half of parents (43%) had seen fees rise by between 5% and 10%. Around a tenth of parents (9%) had seen rises of more than 10%.
The majority (54%) expressed worries about levels of staffing at childcare providers. 1 in 4 (24%) stated they were particularly concerned about staff/child ratios.
An open letter has now been issued to Downing Street with a series of calls for urgent Government action. It’s been written by Plum’s Head of Money Rajan Lakhani, a respected expert in childcare costs. This year, after an open letter sent one year ago, it is again being co-signed by June O’Sullivan of the London Early Years Foundation, Adrienne Burgess of The Fatherhood Institute and Kate Dyson of The Motherload
Plum’s Rajan Lakhani has laid out these key points for urgent action:
- Prioritise the national recruitment campaign for childcare workers and the accelerated apprenticeship route into the sector, supported by a competitive minimum wage
- Properly fund childcare providers providing early years support with a higher hourly rate so they can actually deliver on the promises made in the Spring Statement 2023
- Better communicate the support available currently
- Increase the eligible number of weeks for free childcare from 38 weeks a year to include school holidays
- Reform the currently complex provision of tax credits and childcare vouchers, making it easier for parents to access support
- Explore ways to encourage businesses to make childcare part of their structure, whether through onsite or local provision through tax incentives
A spokesperson from the Department for Education said: "“We are rolling out the single largest expansion in childcare in England’s history, ensuring working parents receive 30 hours of free childcare a week.
"This is backed by a £204 million boost to provider funding rates last September and more than £400 million in April, which can be used to support staff salaries. We are also providing a package of training, qualifications, and expert guidance worth up to £180 million to help retain staff in the sector."