Labour exposes council cuts to childcare training

Figures obtained through a Freedom of Information request by Labour’s shadow education secretary Stephen Twigg MP, show the 136 local authorities in total have cut the amount they spend on training for childcare staff from £93m in 2010/11 to £56m in 2011/12.

The local authorities Redcar and Cleveland, Enfield, Solihull and Lewisham spent nothing on training for childcare staff in 2011/12, suggesting there is no money left in their budgets to offer this.

In 2010/11, Redcar and Cleveland spent £629,832 on training, while Enfield spent over £322,479, Solihull £656,380 and Lewisham £154,084.

Other local authorities that have made big cuts to the amount they spent on providing training are Cheshire West and Chester, who have reduced their spend by more than 98 per cent, from £653,955 in 2010/11 to just £11,455 in 2011/12. Doncaster reduced their spending by 94 per cent, and Liverpool 90 per cent.

The findings echo those in the latest National Day Nurseries Association’s Business Performance Survey 2012, which revealed that of the 240 responses from nursery owners, 79 per cent have seen subsidised or free training from local authorities reduced. Nearly 40 per cent believed training offered by their local authority has reduced significantly.

The news comes as the Government plans to reduce staff to child ratios, which experts warn could compromise standards and children's safety.

Labour shadow education secretary Stephen Twigg said, ‘Parents will be extremely concerned that the Government’s plans could reduce the quality of childcare and put child safety at risk.

‘In some parts of the country, there is now no money available to train nursery staff, and we have seen 381 Sure Start centres close down. Local authorities have had to endure the deepest cuts of any area of government. We also know these cuts have been worst in the areas of most need.

‘Now the Tories want to go further and reduce the numbers of nursery staff and increase the numbers of toddlers they can look after. Experts at Labour’s Childcare Summit told us this will not reduce costs to taxpayers or parents and it will jeopardise quality. Two-thirds of childminders say that if the Government’s plans to increase ratios were implemented child safety would be compromised.’

He added, ‘David Cameron has created a childcare crisis with higher costs, fewer places and less support through tax credits. Change is needed urgently, but it must be change that drives down costs for hard pressed families while maintaining quality.’

Education and chidlcare minister Elizabeth Truss hit  back, claiming that Mr Twigg's comments, as reported in an article for a national newspaper, were inaccurate and incoherent.

‘Stephen Twigg has today exposed Labour’s total opportunism and incoherence on childcare,' Ms Truss said. 'He starts by attacking the idea of loosening staff: child ratios but in the next breath he says we should move to the Swedish system – where they have no compulsory ratios at all. Either he is deliberately pulling the wool over people’s eyes, or he doesn’t know what he is talking about, ' she said.

Commenting on the findings, Purnima Tanuku, chief executive of the National Day Nurseries Association, said, 'Reduction in council training budgets represents another challenge for nurseries, in a climate of falling occupancy, funding shortfalls and rising costs such as food and utility bills.

'For nurseries to continue to offer high-quality early education, which meets Government objectives, investment in training is essential. To support nurseries with their training needs in the wake of local government cuts NDNA has developed a range of value-for-money training courses, including online options. However decreases in local government training support could mean fee increases for parents as nurseries are forced to find new ways to finance training.'

Neil Leitch, chief executive of the Pre-School Learning Alliance, said, 'We have long been aware that local authorities across England have been slashing their childcare training budgets as they seek to find ways to cut costs. This is why last year we introduced our free distance learning training courses with EduCare for all Alliance members in order to help early years settings obtain the training their staff need.

'The education and childcare Minister talks about wanting a highly-skilled, professional workforce at a time when it is more difficult to have access to the training necessary for this to happen. Yet there appears to be limited thinking within the Coalition Government about how to provide, maintain and secure high-quality childcare provision that gives the best start possible to young children.

'It is of concern that the Coalition's answer to reducing the cost of childcare to parents may be to set in motion a corner-cutting exercise that could result in lower quality standards and child safety issues rather than focus on what's best for children.'