Meeting of the Parliament 03 June 2015
Transforming childcare is certainly one of the most important challenges that we face. As a mum of three young children, it is an issue close to my heart, so I welcome the opportunity to speak in the debate.
Last night, along with the minister, I attended the launch of One Parent Families Scotland’s programme for change. At the heart of the priorities identified by single parents is the need to transform childcare not only to ensure that it is high quality, flexible and affordable, but to enable parents to work and study, while also meeting children’s development needs and addressing the inequalities that continue to impact on children’s life chances. Earlier this year, the Family and Childcare Trust revealed that only 15 per cent of councils in Scotland have enough childcare capacity to meet working parents’ needs. That compares with 43 per cent in England.
As Liz Smith has outlined, one of the biggest challenges is the fact that many thousands of children are missing out on the 600 hours of early education that they are entitled to right now. We often hear in the Parliament about the apparent 98.5 per cent take-up of free places, but that does not reflect the reality on the ground. The fair funding for our kids campaign says:
“For many children and working parents ... the system is not delivering a model of childcare that matches the needs of the modern working family ... Right now, thousands of families across Scotland are unable to access their legal entitlement to free childcare because most council nurseries do not offer suitable hours for working parents.”
For parents who work full time, accessing a free space that is available for only three hours and 10 minutes a day, 38 weeks a year, is simply not an option.
How many children across Scotland are offered places that are so inflexible that working parents cannot access them? How many children are unable to access their 600 hours at all because they attend a private nursery and all the funded places have been allocated? How many children attend a nursery that is not a partnership provider, which means that no money is available to fund their place? How many children who attend a pre-school nursery are not benefiting from the full 600 hours to which they are entitled because the provision does not fit in with the school day? That poses a problem for parents with children at school.