Around 4,000 school-based nursery places to be created from September, government says
by Shannon Pite
Roughly 4,000 new early years places will be delivered across 200 new or expanded school-based nurseries from this September, the government has announced.
The news follows the recent announcement of almost ÂŁ370m in funding to support the future of the school-based nursery programme.
The Department for Education (DfE) has confirmed that further school-based nurseries are set to launch in the autumn as the next phase of the early entitlement expansion is rolled out, taking the total to 300.
The DfE has said that the initiative will help to improve access to early education and childcare for working parents. However, the Alliance has warned that a number of private, voluntary or independent (PVI) settings running on school grounds have been forced out so schools can use government funding to open their own school-based early years setting in the space.
Education secretary Bridget Phillipson said: “Every corner of the early years sector has a vital role to play, and the progress made so far, in the face of an enormous inherited delivery challenge, is testament to their dedication to children and families up and down the country.
“This September is only the beginning. This government has a clear plan for change to get tens of thousands more children school ready each year so that every child, from any background, gets the opportunities they need to get on in life.”
Neil Leitch, CEO of the Early Years Alliance, said: “While we fully recognise that there is an urgent need to boost the number of early years places, we are both disappointed and frustrated that government policy continues to focus almost exclusively on school-based nurseries, especially given this provision accounts for a relatively small proportion of places.
 “With providers from across the sector collectively delivering nearly 1.3 million places to under-fives, it’s clear that the addition of 4,000 places – while welcome – is unlikely to have a significant impact on accessibility overall. What’s more, the extent to which school-based settings will be willing and able to meet the needs of families requiring care and education outside of normal school hours, or during the holidays, remains unclear.  
“With private and voluntary providers delivering the vast majority of early years places – particularly those taken up by younger children – it’s clear that the government simply cannot continue to overlook and undervalue this vital part of the sector.”