Issue - meetings

Childcare Sufficiency 2017

Meeting: 28/09/2017 - Executive (Item 44)

44 Wokingham Borough Council (WBC) Childcare Sufficiency Strategy 2017 pdf icon PDF 182 KB

Additional documents:

Decision:

That the Wokingham Borough Council Childcare Sufficiency Strategy 2017 be approved.

Minutes:

The Executive considered a proposed Childcare Sufficiency Strategy which covered both the current sufficiency and satisfaction with childcare services across the Borough and the readiness of providers to meet the new additional 15 hour free Early Years’ childcare entitlement for the children of working parents’.

 

Members were advised by the Executive Member for Children’s Services that the Council had a statutory duty to ensure that there was sufficient childcare to meet the needs of working families and from this month there would be a universal entitlement for working parents to receive 30 Government funded free hours. 

 

Councillor Ashwell stated that providers were responding positively to this entitlement and were developing offers to enable parents to secure this additional childcare and highlighted three capital projects that were underway to increase provision.  He also reinforced the need to encourage private, voluntary and independent sector providers to increase supply within the fees now available.

 

The Leader of Council highlighted the lists of eligibility criteria for both 2 year old free entitlement funding and 3-4 year old provision, as set out in the Strategy, and asked the press attending the meeting if they could publicise these to ensure that as many people took up their entitlement as possible.

 

RESOLVED:  That the Wokingham Borough Council Childcare Sufficiency Strategy 2017 be approved.