Controversial plans to re-work the way English local authorities fund nursery education are being delayed because of problems with their implementation. These problems were highlighted by the BBC News website after many state-run nurseries warned they faced budget cuts or closure because of the changes.
Children’s Minister Dawn Primarolo said only a third of local councils would be ready to bring in the new arrangements.
A government poll of councils said many were having “serious difficulties”. Under the Early Years Single Funding Formula, the government wants private, voluntary and independent nurseries to be funded at the same level as state-run pre-schools, which currently get more cash. It’s really important that we take the time to get this right so that the really disadvantaged children aren’t the ones to lose out.
Many predicted this change would lead to very effective state-run nursery schools being unable to continue as they do at present. And ministers faced the prospect of local campaigns to prevent highly-valued nurseries from being run down or even closed. But now the introduction of this change has been postponed until April 2011 – after the General Election – and it is unclear whether it will ever be brought in.
Announcing the move in a written ministerial statement, Children’s Minister Dawn Primarolo said many local authorities had been working hard to prepare for the formula’s implementation in April 2010. “However, during the summer it became clear that a significant number of local authorities were experiencing difficulty in developing their EYSFF.
“More recently, parents and providers, from both the maintained and the PVI sectors, have expressed concerns about the potential adverse impact on provision if the EYSFF is introduced now,” she said. She added that the department had surveyed all local authorities in November to establish how much progress they had made.
It found “considerable variation in terms of their readiness,” she said, with less than a third predicting they would be ready to introduce the EYSFF from April 2010. “While it is difficult to generalise about the underlying reasons it seems clear that some local authorities have experienced serious difficulties in obtaining accurate data from their providers, while others have simply found the task extremely challenging,” she added.
Megan Pacey of Early Education, which represents state-run nurseries, welcomed the move, saying: “Many local authorities were really struggling to make the balance and the formula work.
“The minister said two-thirds of local authorities were not ready to run this properly. “We are in a place now that it’s acknowledged that maintained nurseries have a role to play and do a very different job to those in the private, voluntary and independent sector.” But, she added, that nurseries in the maintained sector would have to “reform and evolve” in order secure their futures.
“It’s really important that we take the time to get this right, so that the really disadvantaged children aren’t the ones to lose out.” Shadow Families Minister Maria Miller said: “Over the summer, around 300 nurseries left the childcare market. “Two thirds of all nurseries say they are not getting enough money from government to deliver free hours. “The Early Years Single Funding Formula should have helped private and voluntary nurseries get a better deal. But the government have failed to ensure its delivery. Hard working parents will suffer as even more places are lost.”