SPENDING REVIEW 2004 - DCSFPSA TARGETS - TECHNICAL NOTES

Target / Technical Note
Safeguard children and young people, improve their life outcomes and general well-being, and break cycles of deprivation
1. Improve children’s communication, social and emotional development so that by 2008 50% of children reach a good level of development at the end of the Foundation Stage and reduce inequalities betweenthe level of development achieved by children in the 20% most disadvantaged areas and the rest of England.
(Sure Start Unit target, joint with the Department for Work and Pensions)
The target level was reviewed and updated.
1. Improve children’s communication, social and emotional development so that by 2008 53%of children reach a good level of development at the end of the Foundation Stage and reduce inequalities betweenthe level of development achieved by children in the 30% most disadvantaged Super Output Areas and the rest of England, by four percentage points from 16% to 12%.
(Department for Children, Families and Schools (Early Years, Extended Schools and Special Needs Group)target, joint with the Department for Work and Pensions) / Achievement of this target will contribute to the objective of increasing the proportion of children who are prepared for their education and to the broader objectives of giving children a better start in life and reducing inequalities in outcomes for children.
Personal, social and emotional development; and communication, language and literacy.
The Foundation Stage Profile (FSP) is a continuous teacher assessment during the final year of the Foundation Stage with a final recorded outcome at the end of the Foundation Stage, usually at age 5. It is based on practitioners’ continuing observations and assessments throughout the final year of the Foundation Stage, supplemented by contributions from parents and building on ongoing assessment information passed on from practitioners in settings previously attended by the children. The Profile covers all six areas of learning in the Curriculum guidance for the foundation stage:
  • Personal, social and emotional development (PSE).
  • Communication, language and literacy (CLL).
  • Mathematical development.
  • Knowledge and understanding of the world.
  • Physical development.
  • Creative development.
This target refers to the first two areas of learning. For PSE there are three assessment scales, and for CLL there are four. Each assessment scale has nine points. Children assessed as achieving 4 points on the scale have achieved at least one early learning goal; those achieving 6 points are working securely within a wide range of goals across a broad curriculum; and those achieving 8 points are judged to have met every early learning goal to which the scale relates. Point 9 signifies that those children are working consistently beyond the level of the early learning goals.
In order to gain an accurate picture of children's attainment in PSE and CLL, it is necessary to use pupil level data. A 10% sample has been used for data collected up until 2006. From 2007, the Department will be collecting 100% child level data to provide maximum accuracy in reporting against the target.
Definition of “a good level”
“Good” is defined as a score of 6 points on all 7 assessment scales. This is not too high to raise concerns about putting excessive pressure on young children, and not too low to be unchallenging. Based on the 2003 10% sample of pupil level data, 48% of children gained 6 or more points on all seven assessment scales for PSE and CLL. The proportion gaining 7 points or more on all seven assessment scales was 32%, 8 points or more was 16% and 9 points was 4%. The proportion receiving under 4 on all seven assessment scales was 1.3%.
Data and Progress
Data used to measure this target will come from the FSP owned by the Qualifications and Curriculum Agency (QCA). The data period is the school year and data refer to all children completing the foundation stage in that particular year.
Foundation stage schools and settings will submit to the LAthe thirteen FSP summary scores for each child who will reach the end of the foundation stage in that school or setting in the summer, together with child identification data, i.e. forename, surname, Unique Pupil Number (UPN), gender, date of birth and home postcode. The LAsubmits aggregated data to the DCSFtogether with a representative 10% sample of individual pupil results.
Quality controls – data will be collected via a consistent national framework developed by QCA
Baseline will be the July 2005 results, when area level data first become available. The level of increase required over the period 2005-08 will be confirmed following analysis of the 2005 results.
Progress will be measured annually from 2005. Assessments are finalised in July each year, with data being analysed and normally available for use by December.
Progress on the target will be measured against two indicators:
  • Increasing the proportion of children across England achieving a good level
  • The inequalities in the proportion of children achieving a good level between the 20% most disadvantaged areas and the rest of England should be reduced.
  • The target will be considered to be met if both parts are met individually. If either part of this target is met then this target will be deemed to be partly met.
Area/Ward Statistics: The 30% most disadvantaged wards are currently defined by reference to the Index of Multiple Deprivation 2000 (IMD2000). We are considering how to make best use of the new IMD2004, which is based on small area statistics (super output areas), as a basis for determining priorities for development and delivery and for measuring this target.
2.As a contribution to reducing the proportion of children living in households where no one is working, by 2008:
  • increase the stock of Ofsted-registered childcare by 10%;
  • increase the take-up of formal childcare by lower income working families by 50%; and
  • introduce by April 2005, a successful light-touch childcare approval scheme.
(Department for Children. Families and Schools (Early Years, ExtendedSchools and Special Needs Group)target, joint with the Department for Work and Pensions)
The proposed target level for element 2 increasing the take-up of formal childcare by lower income working families by 50% was reviewed and revised to read:
increase the number of children in lower income working families using formal childcare by 120,000; and / PART 1 – THE STOCK OF FORMAL CHILDCARE
The target will be measured by reference to data provided by Ofsted about registered childcare places in England. Ofsted-registered childcare falls into the following categories and covers an estimated 92% of total childcare places:
Full Daycare: This includes nurseries. Places are eligible for registration if they provide childcare at any time (day or night) for children aged under eight on premises other than domestic premises, where the period (or total of periods) in any day during which children are looked after on the premises exceeds four hours. For schools, all new day care starting from April 2004 for children under 8 must be registered; existing daycare including children under 2 must be registered by September 2004; and all existing daycare for children aged 2 and over must be registered by September 2005.
Registered Childminders: To be registered a childminder must look after one or more children aged under eight for a total of more than two hours per day on domestic premises for reward.
Out of School: Facilities that provide day care for children under eight for a total of more than two hours per day operating as before school, after school and/or school holiday clubs.
Measurement of progress
Performance will be assessed annually at 31 March. Achievement of the first part of the target will be assessed by the change between 31 March 2004 and 31 March 2008. Increase in the stock of childcare represents the number of newly created places net of interim closures between the 31 March 2004 and 31 March 2008.
PART 2 – TAKE-UP BY LOWER INCOME WORKING FAMILIES
The target will be measured using data on the take-up of formal childcare collected as part of the DCSF survey of parents’ use of childcare series 2005-8, the first of which is entitled ‘Childcare and Early Years Provision: A Study of Parents’ Use, Views and Experiences’[1]. The target relates to children aged 0-14, living in England. Progress will be reported against the 2005 baseline. This is a proxy measure of the contribution of childcare to enabling low income families to obtain and retain jobs.
For the purposes of this target:
Lower income families are defined as families, in England with at least one child aged 14 years old or younger with gross annual income in the bottom two income quintiles (i.e. bottom 40%). The target will measure the number of children in these families, with working parents, using formal childcare.
National income quintile levelsare derived fromthe national income levels of ALL Families regardless of work status. The DWP’s Family Resources Survey (FRS) gives a more robust measure of income levels than the DCSF survey of parents’ use of childcare, which collects income data in broad bands. Consequently the DWP’s FRS will be used to set national income quintile levels for this target.
The income bands derived from the 2005 DCSF survey which most closely match those which are derived from the FRS (2004/5) are as follows:
Lowest quintile / Second quintile / Third quintile / Fourth quintile / Highest quintile
FRS (rounded to nearest thousand) / 0-£12,999 / £13,000-£18,999 / £19,000-£24,999 / £25,000-£35,999 / £36,000+
Nearest achievable DCSF survey of parents use of childcare bands / 0-£14,999 / £15,000-£19,999 / £20,000-£25,999 / £26,000-£37,999 / £38,000
These income bands have been used to set the 2005 baseline.
For 2007 and 2008, the income bands in the parents’ childcare survey will be revised to enable as close a match as possible with the latest available FRS data. Income quintiles for 2007 will be derived by matching the 2007 DCSF survey bands with the 2005/6 FRS quintiles. Income quintiles for 2008 will be derived by matching the 2008 DCSF survey with the 2006/7 FRS quintiles.
A child in a working family- is a child aged 0-14 in a family where at least one of the adults in the benefit unit, i.e. the adults upon whom that child is dependent- works. Work here is defined as either full-time self-employed, full-time employee, part-time self-employed or part-time employee. The gross annual income level of the family must be in the bottom two national income quintiles.
Formal childcare is defined as childcare that ispaid for on a regular basis or is provided as part of a free entitlement provided by Government to appropriately aged children. The DCSF survey captures any time when the child is not with a resident parent/carer (or their current partner) or at compulsory school. The following childcare types are classed in the survey as‘formal Childcare’-Nursery School, Nursery Class, Reception Class, Special, Day School or Nursery or Unit, Day Nursery, Playgroup or Pre-School, Childminder, Nanny/Au Pair, Babysitter who came to the child’s home[2], Breakfast/After School Club, not on school site, Holiday Club/Scheme.
All childcare provided by ex-partners, relatives, friends and neighbours are excluded, even if payment is made. This definition, unlike that used in the first part of this target, does not focus exclusively on Ofsted registered childcare.
Measurement of progress
Data source - The data source will be the DCSF annual survey series ‘Childcare and Early Years Provision: A Study of Parents’ Use, Views and Experiences’.
At the time of the SR04 it was felt that the Family Resources Survey (FRS) would be the best source for monitoring progress. However, in 2005/06 major changes were made to the childcare questions in the FRS which made it impossible to establish a baseline and realistic trajectory. Having reviewed options it was agreed that the DCSF Parents Childcare Survey would be the most appropriate alternative. FRS data showed that in 2003/04-2004/05 there were 173,500 children using formal childcare in lower income working families compared to 615,000 for the DCSF survey.
Data - Progress will be measured using child-level data. This will be grossed up to national level to show the number of children (to the nearest 1,000) in low income families using formal childcare.
Data collection - The data for the 2005 baseline survey was collected from September 2004-January 2005. For 2007 and 2008 data collection periods will be from January-March, with data being publishedin January the following year.
Baseline - The baseline year will be 2005, using data published in the ‘Childcare and Early Years Provision: A Study of Parents’ Use, Views and Experiences’ survey (2006). The baseline shows that 615,000 (25.8%) children in lower income working families used formal childcare in 2005 - the table below shows how this figure was derived:
Household Income Quintiles (working households)
Lowest quintile (0- £14,999) / Second quintile (£15,000-£19,999 / Third quintile (£20,000-£25,999) / Fourth quintile (£26,000-£37,999 / Highest quintile (£38,000+) / Other
Has not used formal childcare in the last week / 865 / 705 / 692 / 853 / 816 / 347
Has used formal childcare in the last week / 301 / 246 / 308 / 435 / 621 / 126
Total / 1,166 / 951 / 1,000 / 1,288 / 1,437 / 473
Number/Percentage using childcare* / 339,000 (25.8%) / 277,000 (25.9%) / 347,000 (30.8%) / 490,000 (33.8%) / 698,000 (43.2%) / 2,150,000 (26.6%)
Baseline* / 615,000
(25.8%)
* Rounded to the nearest 1,000.
Projections -A stretching target of increasing the number of children in lower income working families, using formal childcare, by 120,000 has been set. This represents an increase of nearly 20% of children in lower income working families taking up formal childcare. For comparative purposes, it is useful to note that on the basis of 2005 policies, interventions and labour market conditions it has been estimated that the rate of increase would be 21,500 (3.5%) per year which equates to 64,600 (10.5%) over 3 years.
It is worth noting that if the FRS data source was retained, with the original target of an increase of 50%, this would equate to a target of an increase of 86,750 children using formal childcare from lower income working families, which is considerably lower than the agreed target of 120,000 children.
Progress - The target will be achieved if the number of children in lower income working families using formal childcare increases from the 2005 baseline of 615,000 to 735,000 by March 2008.
The growth in the number of children in working families in the top three income quintiles that use formal childcare will also be monitored and assessments will be made on how growth in the take-up of formal childcare by this group compares to the group in the bottom two income quintiles.
PART 3 – SUCCESSFUL INTRODUCTION OF LIGHT TOUCH CHILDCARE APPROVAL SCHEME
The aim is to create a scheme for approving carers who are not required by the Children Act to be registered. This allows a greater number of parents access to the childcare element of the Working Tax Credit and Employer Supported Childcare tax and National Insurance Contributions exemptions.
Following consultation, the types of care eligible to be approved by the Scheme are:
Childcare in the parent’s home (this to include people referred to as “nannies”, or as “au pairs” including those on the HO au pair placement scheme);
Childcare for children over the age of 7 - by a childminder
The timetable for the Childcare Approval Scheme is that an approval service will be in place,
To accept applications from individual home-based carerswhose 'parents/ employers' are inreceipt of Employer Vouchers from January 2005.This will be treated as a live pilot of the systems that the Approval Body puts in place, and
  • To have a fully operational approval service for all individual home-based carers and childminders for Over 7s by end March 2005.
Measurement of progress
The criteria for successful introduction are:
Introduction of the scheme to the timetable above.
Ability to provide an efficient service with 80% turn-round time of six weeks (including the 4 weeks it takes to get an enhanced disclosure from the CRB).
Ability to achieve this at a fee for individuals not higher than £125 per approval.
3,500 approvals3[3]during the year ending March 31 2008This target was met in December 2006 and the Childcare Approval Scheme will be phased out from 1 October as it has been replaced by the voluntary part of the Ofsted Childcare Register. Therefore this target has been closed.
Achievement of the whole target
Parts 1, 2 and 3 of this PSA target will all need to be met individually for the whole target to be met. If one or more parts of this target are met then this target will be deemed to be partly met.
3. Reduce the under-18 conception rate by 50% by 2010 as part of a broader strategy to improve sexual health.
(Joint with the Department of Health) / Definition: The under-18 conception rate is the number of conceptions to under 18 year olds per thousand females aged 15-17. It is calculated on a calendar year basis.
Base Year: Calendar Year 1998.
Target Year: Calendar year 2010 (data will be published in February 2012).
Source of Data: ONS Conception Statistics (see: derived from birth registrations, abortion notifications and mid year population estimates. This is a well established, published statistical series.
4. Halt the year-on-year rise in obesity among children under 11 by 2010 in the context of a broader strategy to tackle obesity in the population as a whole.
(Joint with the Department of Health and the Department for Culture, Media and Sport) / Scope
Children aged between 2 and 10 years (inclusive) in England.
Obesity
Prevalence of obesity as defined by the National BMI percentile classification (from the 1990 reference population from T J Cole et al) and measured through the Health Survey for England. Children above the 95th percentile of the 1990 reference curve are defined as obese.
Halt the year on year increase
Obesity in 2–10 year olds rose, on average, by 0.8% per year between 1995 and 2002. Halting the increase would mean no significant change in prevalence between the two three year periods 2005/06/07 and 2008/09/10.
Data source
Health Survey for England (see: We are also exploring with colleagues in DH and DCSF the cost and feasibility of options for obtaining more local level information.
Baseline year
Due to the small sample size the baseline will be the weighted average for the three-year period 2002/03/04.