Provision
Provision: Childcare places plunge by 11,000
The total number of childcare places in England has dropped by 11,000 in three months as the recession takes its toll on early years providers, the latest Ofsted figures show.
Data for the number of providers and places at the end of December (see table below) shows a fall in both the numbers of childminders and 'non-domestic' childcare settings on the Early Years Register since September.
The number of childminders has fallen by 813 over the last quarter, from 58,611 to a new low of 57,798, while the number of non-domestic settings has fallen by 146, from 27,131 to 26,985. The total number of childcare places across all types of setting now stands at 1,321,144, down from 1,332,976, in September (News, 4 November).
For the first time, Ofsted has included a table comparing the number of 'active providers' on the Early Years Register with the number of providers joining and leaving the sector in the quarter.
The number of nannies who have chosen to join the Voluntary Childcare Register, categorised as 'home childcarers', has increased from 6,348 to 6,808.
Andrew Fletcher, joint chief executive of the National Childminding Association, said, 'NCMA is disappointed the number of registered childminders is continuing to decline, albeit at a slower rate. There are a number of reasons for this, most notably changes to policy and regulatory frameworks and the challenging economic environment.'
A spokesperson from Ofsted said, 'There may be many reasons why childminders' numbers have fallen - a fall in demand, or the economic recession may have meant some providers can no longer continue. Ofsted does not record providers' reasons for resigning their registration.'
Ofsted is to axe up to 55 early years inspectors, because of the fall in the number of registered childminders. A spokesperson from the Unison union said that morale is bad among employees at the inspectorate and many have applied for voluntary redundancy.
Unison officer Jon Richards said, 'We accepted that there was an argument for voluntary redundancies based on potential workloads and on this occasion we have worked well with Ofsted on reaching a fair agreement.'
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