Doncaster Council

2013

Childcare Sufficiency Assessment Review

Doncaster Early Years and Childcare Service

CONTENTS PAGE

Pages

1. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
1.1 Introduction
1.2 Methodology
1.3 Key Findings / 3 to 7
3
4
5
2. GAP ANALYSIS AND RECOMMENDATIONS
2.1 Geographical Gaps
2.2 Type Gaps
2.3 Age Gaps
2.4 Time Gaps
2.5 Income Gaps
2.6 Specific Needs Gaps / 8 to 18
8
9
11
14
15
17
3. GAP ANALYSIS MATRIX
3.1 Methodology
3.2 Doncaster Gap Analysis Matrix / 19 to 20
19
20

1. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

1.1 Introduction

The Early Years and Childcare Service, part of the Children and Young Peoples Service within Doncaster Council is taking the lead on the sufficiency and sustainability of the childcare market in Doncaster.

The Government has encouraged the development of Early Years and Childcare Services across the country to ensure the infrastructure is in place to support families back into work and also to give children the “best start in life”. To ensure this service is mainstreamed, the Government placed statutory duties on Local Authorities through the introduction of new legislation. The Childcare Act was passed into law on the 6th July 2006. The Local Authority is required to take the strategic lead by planning, supporting and commissioning childcare.

Sections 6 and 11 of the Childcare Act 2006 outlined the statutory duty for Local Authorities with a regard to securing sufficient childcare to enable eparents to work or those making the transistion to work; and ensuring there is a sufficient supply of quality childcare providers to meet the needs of children eligble for the 2, 3 & 4 year old free entitlement.

A Childcare Sufficiency Assessment measures the nature and extent of the demand and supply of childcare within a Local Authority local area. It identifies where there are gaps in the childcare market and informs a market management action plan. The Government set a number of factors, which can be regarded as the benchmark of sufficiency:

  • There are sufficient childcare places overall in each sub locality area
  • Provision is flexible and accessible to fit in with working patterns
  • There is a range of childcare provision that is affordable and of a high quality
  • Provision is inclusive to meet particular needs of children with a disability or special educational need
  • Childcare is sustainable

Childcare sufficiency is not just about having enough childcare places to meet the needs of working and training parents, it is about ensuring the provision is of a high quality, it improves the outcomes for children, narrows the gap in attainment and is inclusive and flexible to meet families’ needs. The provision needs to ensure continuity of care and service by being a sustainable business with affordable fees. A sufficient, sustainable, quality childcare market underpins the poverty agenda, supports local economic development and the Councils Integrated Family Support Service’s early intervention and preventative strategies.

A full report was produced in Summer Term 2012 (with an update in the Autumn Termfor each of the 21 Children’s Centre areas and covers sub-locality information to provide a localised picture of the area. The Early Years and Childcare Service has worked in partnership with a range of public, voluntary and private sector partners, children’s centres, service providers and families to collate the information within each area report.

The March 2013 Childcare Sufficiency Assessment is made up of this document and the 21 sub-locality children’s centre reports. It provides an overall summary for Doncaster based on the gaps and recommendations identified for each area. Supporting evidence is presented in the 21 Children’s Centre Area Reports, available on the Doncaster Families Information Service website:

This report has been collated and produced by theEarly Years and Childcare Service, if you have any comments or wish to discuss any of the content of the report please contact: The Sufficiency and Information Team on 01302 862126 or email

1.2 Methodology

A wide range of methods were used to produce the sub-locality reports and to enable a gap analysis with recommendations to be made. The following sections are provided within the 21 Children’s Centre reports.

  • Section 2: Factors Affecting Demand and the Ability to Pay for Childcare.This is based on desk research to gather secondary data to present a range of demographic and socio-economic indicators that may affect either the demand or ability to pay for childcare
  • Section 3: The Supply of Childcare. A Childcare Places Audit to map the supply of registered and unregistered childcare in Doncaster. This was carried out with Ofsted registered childcare providers and schools during the Summer Term 2012 and an update in the Autumn Term
  • Section 4: Free Flexible Entitlement for 3 & 4 Year Olds. The Childcare Places Audit,Schools Census and Private, Voluntary and Independent (PVI) headcount information for Summer Term 2012 was used to inform the take-up and the sufficiency of places compared to the number of catchment children. The information in this section is based on the school pyramid catchment areas
  • Section 5: Children with a Disability. This section was based at Doncaster Level to present the supply and demand for childcare for children with a disability or special educational need and the support that is available to parents, specificially through the Childcare Brokerage Service
  • Section: 6: Understanding the Needs of Parents and Carers. Parent consultation was undertaken in 2011 through a parent survey distributed to schools, childcare providers and the children’s centre; to identify current and future demand for childcare and whether parent’s needs are being met. The sample size was based on achieving a 1% return rate of the working population. Additional demand information is gathered through Doncaster Families Information Service each quarter regarding the number and type of childcare enquires
  • Section: 7, 8, & 9: Consultation with Childcare Providers, Consultation with Employers, and Consultation with Children & Young People. There was no requirement to provide an update for the Summer and AutumnTerm 2012 Children’s Centre reports and this 2013 Childcare Sufficiency Review
  • Section 10: Gap Analysis and Recommendations.This identified the key issues any gaps in the sufficiency of childcare through a gap analysi in line with statutory guidance. As part of the managing the market process, the findings of the area reports and the recommendations have been shared with key partners at the children’s centre Advisory Boards and childcare provider meetings

1.3 Key Findings

The following summary of the key findings is extracted from the June 2012 Children’s Centre Area reports.

Demographic and Socio-Economic Indicators

  • Eleven of the 21 children’s centre areas in Doncaster were within the 30% most deprived areas nationally. The Central Children’s Centre area is the most deprived area of Doncaster at 8.6%
  • 5% of children accessing children’s centre services in Doncaster were recorded within the Black or Minority Ethnic categories
  • 17% of Doncaster’s working-age population claimed out of work benefits. The following children’s centre areas had a higher percentage than the Doncaster average: Adwick (20%), Balby (20%), Bentley (22%), Central (31%), Denaby & Conisbrough (24%), Mexborough (24%), Moorends (23%), Rossington (18%), Stainforth (25%), Wheatley (21%)
  • Over the past few years, Doncaster has seen a significant transformation through investment to the area which has impacted on the social and economic opportunities for example: The Robin Hood Airport, Doncaster Racecourse, Keepmoat Stadium, Doncaster Lakeside and the Frenchgate Interchange to new projects that are currently under construction such as the Civic and Cultural Quarter which are creating a host of investment opportunities and potential avenues for new investors

Supply of Childcare

  • Doncaster has a diverse range of childcare provision across the maintained, private, voluntary and independent sector that includes: day nurseries, pre-school playgroups, childminders, school nurseries, breakfast, after-school clubs and holiday playschemes
  • There were a total of 19930 childcare places in Doncaster (6554 through Ofsted registered childcare providers and 13376 unregistered childcare places through schools) in the Summer Term 2012
  • Doncaster had a 70% occupancy rate of childcare places and a 30% vacancy rate in the Summer Term 2012
  • To support parents that work outside the normal core hours 20% of childcare places are available before 8am in the morning and 6% are available after 6pm in the evening
  • The average penetration rate for Doncaster is 12% (this equates to 12 childcare places per 100 children). Nine children’s centre areas have below the 12% national benchmark.The Mexborough Children’s Centre area has the lowest percentage of childcare places to children at 6%

Average Childcare Costs

  • The cost of childcare can vary significantly across the 21 children’s centre areas:
  • The highest cost for a day nursery place for children under 2 years is Finningley & Torne Valley Children’s Centre at £14.59 higher than the Doncaster average
  • The highest cost for a day nursery place for children under 2 years is Denaby Main & Conisbrough Children’s Centre at £18.62
  • Mexborough Children’s Centre has the higest average cost for a childminder place at approximately £7.00 higher than the Doncaster average
  • The cost of an Ofsted registered childcare place in Doncaster is lower than the Yorkshire and Humber average within a day nursery. An average childminder place in Doncaster is equal to the Yorkshire and Humber average

Quality and Sustainability of Ofsted Registered Childcare Provision

  • 68% of inspected Ofsted childcare providers were judged ‘Good’ or ‘Outstanding’
  • 34 childcare providers received an ‘Outstanding’ judgement
  • The majority of group childcare providers in Doncaster are sustainable with only 2% receiving a ‘Red’ in the Red Amber Green sustainability rating. This system informs the planning of focused support, advice and information where a gap is identified or the level of childcare places are required to be maintained

Free Early Years Provision (FEYP) for 3 & 4 year olds

  • Information within this section was provided at School Pyramid level. The Summer Term 2012 showed across Doncaster there are a maximum of 6354free early yearsplacesfor the 6174 catchment children (with the 5% contingency applied)
  • There are sufficient FEYP places for three and four year olds to access their entitlement across Doncaster over the next two years and to take into account fluctuations in population changes.
  • When analysed at sub-locality level the following school pyramid areaswill need to be monitored and maintained to ensure that if a provider were to close, the area would remain sufficient:Adwick, Armthorpe, Balby, Campsmount, Conisbrough, Don Valley, Hungerhill, Mexborough, Rossington, Thorne
  • The following school pyramid areas have sufficiently more free early education places than children and no further action is required: Danum, Edlington, Hall Cross, Hatfield, Hayfield, Ridgewood

Children with a Disability

  • Care for children with a disability or special educational need is available within the maintained, private, voluntary and independent (pvi) sector:
  • All PVI group providers meet the requirements of the Special Educational Needs Code of Practice and the Disability Discrimination Act
  • Three are designated as ‘enhanced providers’ to be able to support children with more complex needs
  • A significant proportion of children with learning difficulties and disabilities are educated in mainstream schools that are required to follow the SEN Code of Practice
  • There are five special schools for children with moderate to severe learning difficulties and additional needs
  • There is lower demand for childcare from parents who have a child with a disability or special need; however support is often required to help the parent find suitable childcare. Fifteen out of the 59 childcare brokerage cases were specifically to support parents of children with a disability

Parent Demand for Childcare

  • In 2011 parent demand surveys were undertaken in the Armthorpe and Mexborough Children’s Centre areas as an update to the 2009 - 2010 parent consultation. The aim was to establish if current provision meets need or if further childcare is required in these areas
  • The findings for Armthorpe indicate the current levels of childcare in the area are sufficient to meet parent’s current and future needs. Parents are happy with their childcare arrangements and no gaps in demand were identified
  • The findings for Mexborough indicate the current levels of childcare within the children’s centre area and neighbouring areas are sufficient to meet parent’s needs with no gaps in demand identified. The level of after-school activities based within the local schools continues to be monitored to ensure they remain sufficient to meet future demand
  • No further consultation will need to be undertaken in these two children’s centre areas unless there issignificantidentified change

2. Gap Analysis and Recommendations

The information within this gap analysis and the outcome and recommendations has been taken from Section 8 of the individual children’s centre area reports. Further supporting detail and evidence is included in the21 children’s centre area reports.

A gap analysis with recommendations was carried out in the Summer Term 2012 (with an update in the Autumn Term 2012) in-line with the statutory guidance.

Geographical Gap:
/ Where the geographical area has a general shortage of supply
Type Gap:
/ Where there is a shortage in the type of childcare for which parents may be expressing a preference
Age Gaps:
/ Where there is a shortage of childcare suitable to meet the needs and requirements of a certain age group
Time Gap:
/ Where there is a shortage of childcare at a time that parents would wish to use childcare
Income Gap:
/ Where there is a shortage of affordable childcare for the income groups populating an area
Specific Needs Gap:
/ Where there is a shortage of suitable places for disabled children, or children with other specific needs or requirements, including those from particular faiths or community groups

Dfes: Childcare Sufficiency Assessments: Guidance for Local Authories 2007

2.1 Geographical Gaps

Is current childcare provision sufficiently accessible?

Methodology

To look atthe percentage childcare penetration rate alongside the occupancy rate of childcare places. The benchmarks were set at:

  • 70% occupancy rate: therefore 71% or above is the indicator
  • 12% childcare penetration rate: therefore 11% or below is the indicator (the penetration rate is the number of registered childcare places for every 100 children)

Occupancy above the benchmark, alongside a penetration rate below the benchmark indicates a potential low number of childcare places in the area with only a few vacant places to meet demand. This outcome showed that a childcare gap may exist within the children’s centre area.

There are nine children’s centre areas with a childcare penetration rate lower than the 12% benchmark. Fourteen children’s centre areas had an occupancy rate higher than 70% (this reduced to seven in the Autumn Term 2012). Further analysis was undertaken that took into account the demand and availability of childcare to determine what, if any, action was required.

Outcome

The supporting evidence (available in the Summer 2012 Children’s Centre Area Reports)demonstrated good availability and parental choice of childcare options to meet current and future demand.

A geographical gap was not identified across any of the Children’s Centre areas of Doncaster and no further action was required.

Geographical Gap Recommendations:
  • Continue to monitor parent demand through the childcare enquiries and prioritise this area to undertake a Parent Demand Survey. This will ensure the information is kept up to date to inform future gap analysis
  • Families Information Service enquiries and unmet demand information is further broken down to ensure the age-group of each child is known alongside the type of childcare required
  • Continue to monitor the supply of childcare and the occupancy levels to check that stock levels are maintained or improved by:
  • The undertaking of a Childcare Places Audit 3 times per year to update baseline data held by the Families Information Service
  • Reviewing the position on receipt of new, additional data or information changes from a childcare provider outside of the audit process
  • Update the child population data in line with the review of childcare supply information to monitor the percentage penetration rate (childcare places per 100 children)

2.2 Type Gaps

Is there a sufficient range and choice of childcare available for parents?

Methodology

This investigatedif parental choice is limited across a particular type of childcare. Figures were collated on: the number of parents in the Parent Survey that stated they would prefer to use a different type of childcare (demand figures); and the current availability of childcare places (the vacant places) for each childcare type.

Demand figures were established through the number of parents in the survey that stated the type of childcare they would like to use in the future (2011 to 2013). This was based on the highest response given for each type. If there is greater demand than availability for any of the childcare types, this would indicate that a childcare gap may exist.

Further investigation was carried out across the children’s centre areas to identify if the preferred type of childcare was available within surrounding children’s centre areas where the location was presumed to be accessible to parents.

Outcome

Supporting evidence (in theSummer Term 2012 Children’s Centre Area Reports) demonstrated limited availability to meet parent demand for the childcare typeslisted below:

Number of Children’s Centre Areas with a Childcare Type Gap
Day Nursery / Great North Road; Mexborough
Playgroup / Adwick; Armthorpe; Askern; Balby; Barnby Dun Edenthorpe & Kirk Sandall; Cantley & Bessacarr; Central; Denaby & Conisbrough; Dunscroft & Hatfield; Edlington; Great North Road; Intake & Belle Vue; Mexborough; Moorends; Rossington; Sprotbrough; Stainforth; Thorne; Wheatley
Before School / Cantley & Bessacarr; Central
After-School / Balby; Cantley & Bessacarr
Holiday / Balby; Cantley & Bessacarr; Denaby & Conisbrough; Moorends; Thorne; Wheatley
Childminder / Stainforth

A Childcare Type gap can be considered to exist with the identified children’s centre areas.