Agenda item

Report of Suzanne Dunn, Service Director for Education, Schools and Inclusion

A report was presented informing the Committee of the availability and sufficiency of childcare in Gateshead to fulfil the local authority duties as documented within the Childcare Act 2016.

Group early years providers and the number of early education and childcare places they offer have remained stable with only very small changes in number. However, the rate of decline in the number of childminders continues. In 2016, there were 131 Ofsted-registered childminders in Gateshead but by 2023, the number had fallen to 66. (A reduction of 50% over the seven-year period). This trend is reflected nationally. There is no current evidence that the loss of these places has had any impact on sufficiency in Gateshead.

At their most recent inspection, 94% of all Gateshead providers were judged as either good, outstanding, or met. 13 There are 13 providers not yet graded by Ofsted (2 After School Clubs and 11 Childminders). There was one day nursery (Busy Bees in Blaydon) that was graded as Inadequate at the time of the assessment, but this has been re-inspected and is now graded as good. There was also one pre-school (Lyndhurst) graded as Inadequate at the time of the assessment, but this has been re-inspected and is now graded as Requires Improvement. First inspections are usually carried out within a provider’s first 30 months of operation, but there have been some delays to this timescale due to the pandemic.

The following issues were highlighted for consideration:

·         Declining early years population. For example, between 2016 and 2022 the number of two-year-olds living in Gateshead fell from 2,289 to 1,897. A reduction of 17% over a six-year period. The wards most affected by the falling birth rate are Blaydon, Felling and Deckham.

·         The number of two-year olds eligible for a funded place is reducing, partly due to the falling birth rate and partly because the government has not increased eligibility thresholds in line with inflation or increases in minimum wage. For example, most working parents are eligible because they claim Universal Credit. However, their annual net earned income must not exceed £15,400. There were 935 Gateshead children eligible for a funded two-year-old place in July 2018. There are now 706. (January 2023). A reduction of 24% over the last five years.

·         Overall, 91% of providers report that they have vacancies and there is a direct correlation between low occupancy and the level of sustainability.

·         The number of providers and the number of places on offer have generally remained stable with only relatively small changes. However, the number of childminders continues to decline. From July 2016 to July 2023, the number of childminders has reduced by 50%.

·         Media articles frequently refer to a national crisis in the Early Years sector. In Gateshead, providers report that agencies are unable to provide supply staff, vacancies are not able to be filled and people with lower levels of skills and experience are being appointed into leadership roles. It seems likely that this will ultimately have a detrimental effect on quality. 90% of Gateshead’s group childcare providers agreed that there was a crisis within Early Years, 77% agreed that there was a staff recruitment crisis and 51% agreed that there was a staff retention crisis.

RESOLVED:

      i.        The contents of the report and Childcare Sufficiency Report 2023 was noted.

     ii.        The Committee approved the publication of the Sufficiency Report on Gateshead Council’s website.

    iii.        The Committee agreed to bring the report to the attention of Councillors and Portfolio holders.