THE vast majority of places at council-run nurseries are unsuitable for working parents, according to a new study.
A survey by the Fair Funding for Our Kids campaign found more than two thirds of children at state nurseries were offered a place for just three hours and 10 minutes a day.
Almost half of all nursery places in Scotland were for half days only, while less than three per cent of all nursery places were for full days all year round.
Children aged three to five are entitled to 600 hours a year of free childcare, but campaigners say half-day places are almost impossible for working parents to make use of.
A campaign spokesman said: “Early years care is so important, but working parents continue to miss out.
“Very few people have bosses who are prepared to let them work for less than three hours a day, and many don’t have grandparents who can fill gaps in childcare.
“We need much faster progress in eliminating half-day places except where parents specifically request them.”
The survey also found local authorities were underfunding partnership places in private nurseries by up to £461 per child a year.
The research found 21 of Scotland’s 32 local authorities are offering an hourly rate below the national average cost of £4.03 an hour.
However, council umbrella body Cosla said the information was “historical” with a recent expansion of more suitable places.
A spokesman said: “The commitment to the expansion means all families will benefit from longer and more flexible approaches in every council area.”
A Scottish Government spokesman added: “Early learning and childcare flexibility and choice is increasing across the country.”
Meanwhile, a national consultation on Scottish Government plans to expand the free care entitlement revealed fears private nurseries could be forced to close.
Fewer than half of those who responded said the changes would increase choice for parents and carers.
The report said: “There was also a concern the ... still-to-be determined funding rate may lead to some providers pulling out of the market.”
Why are you making commenting on The Herald only available to subscribers?
It should have been a safe space for informed debate, somewhere for readers to discuss issues around the biggest stories of the day, but all too often the below the line comments on most websites have become bogged down by off-topic discussions and abuse.
heraldscotland.com is tackling this problem by allowing only subscribers to comment.
We are doing this to improve the experience for our loyal readers and we believe it will reduce the ability of trolls and troublemakers, who occasionally find their way onto our site, to abuse our journalists and readers. We also hope it will help the comments section fulfil its promise as a part of Scotland's conversation with itself.
We are lucky at The Herald. We are read by an informed, educated readership who can add their knowledge and insights to our stories.
That is invaluable.
We are making the subscriber-only change to support our valued readers, who tell us they don't want the site cluttered up with irrelevant comments, untruths and abuse.
In the past, the journalist’s job was to collect and distribute information to the audience. Technology means that readers can shape a discussion. We look forward to hearing from you on heraldscotland.com
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel