Labour to guarantee care for primary school children 8-6pm

[Simona]

This news came out last night...on the one hand I am happy to hear this on the other I am a bit confused
How will Labour do this I don't know and anything to make after school care more available is welcome...then reading on it says 'schools should club together'
Isn't that what this govt is doing at present...removing barriers for schools and schools and other providers 'working together'??


'' She said childcare should be seen as just as important as other infrastructure investments such as transport, and that Labour would be announcing "a guarantee to every parent that they will be able to get wraparound childcare from 8 to 6 every day".

Provision for parents represents an emerging political battleground, with the Labour move coming days after Nick Clegg announced that £600m a year would be spent on free school meals for all children in the first three years of primary school.
Figures released by the Labour party suggests that after-school provision has been hit hard by austerity measures since the coalition government came to power in 2010, with 37% of local authorities reporting a cut in after-school clubs last year while breakfast clubs have closed in 44% of local areas. The plans would mean that local schools could club together to provide care for a typical working day.''

Alarm bells are ringing here when schools are mentioned and not cms...
It would have been nicer for me to hear this:
schools will work together with cms to ensure there is availability of pre/after school care...

At my school parents have opened an after school club:3.15 to 5.30pn Cost £10 per session
Cheap eh?
but no hot meal at night, no homework, one big room with little in it and run by parents who do not want to work past 5.30pm and, of course, do not offer half term or holiday cover in their newly opened club...I wonder if that school will fail to get 'outstaning' for lack of flexibility as per Clegg's recommendations..

Have you come across such after school care...how does it compare to cms

I will be at the Labour party conference and listening with great interest...hope to feedback if any news come out for childcare...there are rumours

Better get ready and go and find that Sharon Hodgson!!!


Labour to guarantee care for primary school children from 8am to 6pm | Politics | The Guardian

[muffins]

In my town after school with holiday care is mainly taken on by nurseries and CM's, however most schools have a breakfast club. Only one school has an after school club which is the smallest school in town (15 max a yr), this happens to be where my DD goes. They charge £3.75 till 4.15PM which includes a snack then a further £3.75 till 5.30PM which includes a hot meal, have theme nights, arts/crafts available and use of outdoor play area. Its cheap but it seems to work, they split the session so parents with one child at an after school activity can use just that part for siblings and do one collection. I use it for my DD sometimes as I pick up from another school add hoc 2ish nights a week and my husband works shifts so isn't always around to collect, I do collect her straight from the other school but I dont mind paying £3.75 for 15mins just to know she's safe and take the stress of m plus I charge £15 for the pick up I do.

[supermumy]

My kids school do after school club till 5.45 at a price of...... £1.50 a day! That includes a snack

[westbrom44]

I offer a drop off and pick up service for my local school. I charge a minimum £7 for two hours which is the standard fee for where I live and the after school club is just slightly more. I have had quite a few children come to me from the club as they didnt like it. Local childminders are busy again after losing their children to the club initially.

[Glitter]

I run an after school club at my daughters school (*****mind during the day as well). Breakfast club is £3 for one hour, and after school is £3.50 upto 4.30pm and £6.50 up to 6pm. Price includes toast and a drink of milk. It has a quiet room for playing on the computers, doing homework or reading, and a messy room for painting, crafts and playing.

Four years ago we had around 16 children per night, now we have upto 30 children per night (and most of them stay until 5.45pm). I seams more parents are working now and they need reliable child care.

Their is only one childminder who collects form the school and she charges slightly more than the club, and does not provide an evening meal. If the club closed down we do not have enough childminders in the area to care for all these children.

[tulip0803]

I live in a rural village and there are only 3 soon to be 2 childminders in the local area. A childminder from 7 miles away is also doing pickups. The school did do an after school club a few years ago 3-5pm. I was doing a High/Scope course in a city 35 miles away that finished at 3 I often got a call saying the club was cancelled - little I could do from 35 miles away at 3pm! Strangely enough the club did not survive. Until this year they also had a holiday club for 4 weeks in the summer hols 10-2 again that hasn't survived. They do have a breakfast club from 8 which I don't even try to compete with because it is FREE. Next nearest schools are 7 miles away so they would need to bus them about.

I am not taking on any school age children at the moment as I have a 2x4 year olds in 5+ age group already and another 2 due to go up next year - luckily they don't clash as it stands at the moment. 3 more the following year At this rate all my spaces will end up being filled with schoolies. They start school full-time at the start of the term they turn 4 here so you only have pre-school 0-3 then school age 3 3/4 -8 (I am in Wales and 3&4 year olds in full-time school are counted as 5+) so they move up a lot quicker and then are counted 5-8years a lot longer blocking the spaces IYSWIM. I have to drive to the school too so I am limited to the spaces in my car and DD2 takes up one.

[Simona]

The policy will be that it will be made legal for schools to open 8-6pm but that won't work for many women who need longer hours

I have just chatted with Meg Hiller MP and she agrees we need a more flexible approach

Sharon Hodgson is here and I will be attending her session with Lucy Powell....see what comes out of there!

Childcare seems to be a major Labour policy now....let's hope it is deliverable
More announcements tomorrow

[Simona]

This is a summary of the speech by Stephen Twigg

''For many parents, juggling work and the pressures of childcare is a major struggle.

The crippling costs and logistical nightmares of ferrying the kids to different childcare providers are enough to have stopped some parents from being able to go to work. As a country, we can’t afford this to go on. More women out of work. Parents working fewer hours; adding more pressures to already squeezed family budgets. It has to change. But David Cameron has made it harder for families by taking away crucial support. If we are to build an economic recovery that works for everyone, parents need help to play their part.

That is why today I have announced that the next Labour Government will pass a law requiring primary schools to guarantee childcare is available between the hours of 8am and 6pm. We want to send out a clear message to parents who are feeling the squeeze of the cost of living crisis facing families.

David Cameron tells us that things are better. He has washed his hands of the childcare pressures facing parents- having taken no action to help with the costs of childcare for the entire duration of this Parliament.

We know that times are tough and that there are huge constraints on public spending. But this change will not require a load of additional money. It will require schools to better utilise the funding available to them and to work together to get more bang for their buck.

Before and after school childcare for all primary pupils, giving all parents of primary school children the certainty that they can access childcare through their school. A clear message to hard working parents: Labour is on your side''.

I will try to get hold of the full transcript and post here

[Nicola Carlyle]

I love that school is now classed as "childcare" and not "education". I am the only one thinking that this is yet another fly back entrance way to fir our ratios to increase? By this I mean we would more than likely loose our after school kids but what on earth do we do with the pre school kids? We are allowed up to 3 but I seem to remember months ago talks about increasing our ratios to 5. I'm not for or against this as such but just feel that if the above happens, we may also be expected to increase our ratios. Obviously no one can force us to but wonder if this might be their way round it to make it more appealing if you know what I mean? x

[Simona]

Full transcript here
Wraparound care for 'primary children' excludes pre school children...not sure why this was omitted or why cms were not mentioned as the main source of consistent care for all ages

they are proposing to retain 230,000 Teaching assistants which Gove wants to get rid of...that is good news

They want all teachers qualified ...opposing Gove proposals that non qualified can teach in Free Schools....good news too

Unfortunately, for me childcare got put together with the education issue...and that is wrong as childcare deserved a chapter of its own...and in my view a Minister for Children dealing with EY alone and not like Truss with a wide portfolio

I have not heard anything that leads to the cost of childcare being resolved...have you
There is constant talk of rising cost of living for parents as if providers are totally immune to it?

Another day at the conference looms on Tuesday when I hope to hear more...so far not that impressed

Labour Press

[merry]

It seems to me like this is ALL about the convenience of working parents without a thought as to how it would affect children, some very young, to be in school 10 hours a day. We might separate it into the 'school' day and wraparound care, but I doubt children will make that distinction. I know that we must all work and pay taxes until we drop from exhaustion now, but I look back on my own children's childhood where I was able to collect them from school every day, be there to hear their triumphs and sorrows, and I feel very sorry for so many of today's children.

[Simona]

It seems to me like this is ALL about the convenience of working parents without a thought as to how it would affect children, some very young, to be in school 10 hours a day. We might separate it into the 'school' day and wraparound care, but I doubt children will make that distinction. I know that we must all work and pay taxes until we drop from exhaustion now, but I look back on my own children's childhood where I was able to collect them from school every day, be there to hear their triumphs and sorrows, and I feel very sorry for so many of today's children.

Keep your ears open for more announcements today!!!

[hectors house]

Like others have said, what impact will spending 50 hours a week in school have on some children and if the government really wanted to help working parents it would stop schools having such a complicated, long drawn out settling in period for reception children - this needs to be standardised, how can some schools take them straight in all day in September whilst others are part time until half term doing a different "shift" each week - mornings, afternoons, mornings with lunch?

The park this morning was full of rising 5's who were on "afternoon shift" this week - some parents didn't work, some were self employed and having to work round it and other parents who had previously relied on Nurseries had been forced to take holiday or unpaid leave.

[scottishlass]

The after school club at my girls school is completely fully booked and I constantly get calls from people looking for care for schoolies - there is just no childcare here - school is fit to burst so don't know how they could guarantee this everywhere xx

[AliceK]

On the news this morning increasing the free funding childcare for 2 - 4yr olds. I would like to know where they are going to get the spaces from to give all working parents 25hrs free funding in place of the 15hrs free for everyone as it is now. My local school nursery do 2 x 3hr sessions per day (AM and PM) how will they fit in 2 x 5hr sessions per day??

xxxx

[Simona]

On the news this morning increasing the free funding childcare for 2 - 4yr olds. I would like to know where they are going to get the spaces from to give all working parents 25hrs free funding in place of the 15hrs free for everyone as it is now. My local school nursery do 2 x 3hr sessions per day (AM and PM) how will they fit in 2 x 5hr sessions per day??

xxxx

The announcement is about an increase from 15 to 25 hrs for 3 and 4 year olds...2 yo not mentioned
We understand where the money is coming from ...the BIG question is how providers will get funding that covers our costs
Labour are tweeting that they will consult with the sector on this

If this happens then we can make it clear we cannot afford to subsidise childcare any further and the Free entitlement has to cover our costs...in fact it needs to be renamed Early Education Subsidy.

Read the speech here

Labour Press