Agenda item

Response to Minister's Consultation Regarding Free Nursery Places

To receive and consider a verbal report on the proposal by the Government to increase the provision of free nursery places.

Minutes:

The Committee received and considered a verbal report from the Chairman on the proposal by the Government to increase the provision of free nursery places.  She said that the Government was going to consult on the proposal to increase the number of hours of free nursery provision for 3 and 4 year olds in September 2016, from 15 hours per week for 38 weeks to 30 hours per week. 

 

The issue of concern that has come to light is that some of the independent and private providers are currently struggling to meet their costs in providing the 15 free hours, and can only create the extra income needed to survive by charging those people who currently buy additional hours of provision.  If the free hours were to increase there would be little or no requirement for parents to buy extra hours, so the income for the settings would not cover their costs. Providers would have to increase their charges for any additional hours bought. It has been suggested that Local Authorities could help settings in financial difficulties by offering discounted business rates.  Wokingham is a high cost area, and is in competition for staff with adjoining areas which are able to pay more.

 

Gill Walker, Service Manager Standards in Learning, confirmed that the funding is at a national rate which is passed on to the providers via the Local Authority for the sessions they provide.  The Council tries to give as much ‘upfront’ funding as it can, however the level of funding per place will not rise.  Officers had carried out a sufficiency audit for the provision of the free 15 hours, and are now renewing the audit to gather information on the provision for 30 hours; to understand the current capacity and the potential level of need. Members are asked to encourage the providers to give the information requested so that a full picture can be obtained. 

 

If the Early Years settings are not able or willing to meet the demand for the free 30 hours, there would be an impact on the Local Authority, as the responsibility to meet the demand sits with them.  There is little prospect of additional funding coming from either the central Children’s Services budget or the Dedicated Schools Grant funded budgets.

 

The Chairman suggested that the Committee should send a response to the consultation highlighting the specific issues in Wokingham as follows:

 

RESOLVED: that response to the Government’s consultation on increasing the provision of free nursery places for 3 and 4 year olds from 15 hours per week to 30 hours per week for 38 weeks each year be sent in the following terms:

 

‘The costs of running a nursery/early years setting is higher in Wokingham Borough than on other areas of the country, because of the rising costs of rent.  The allocated funding does not cover their basic costs, so some settings are facing the dilemma of having to increase the charge to those families who currently buy additional hours; some of whom only have one working parent, or who might not be able to afford increased costs.

 

To allocate more from the DSG would take funding  away from all others schools in the Borough.  Wokingham receives the lowest per pupil funding in the country.

The Local Authority is not in a position to top up funding for nursery/early years places from central budgets, as it is one of the lowest funded Unitary Authorities in the country.’