Early years sector and parents divided on reopening settings

The research by the Early Years Alliance found that while around six in ten providers plan to reopen today (1 June), other early years settings are in favour of a September or a July return.

A large minority of those not reopening this month - around one in five - say they do not know when they will reopen their early years setting.

The Alliance carried out two separate online surveys in May on views on plans for childcare settings to reopen in June – one aimed at parents and the other aimed at childcare providers.

Among parents not sending their child back, safety is a clear factor, with around 8 in 10 saying that they would need to see a clear fall in cases of coronavirus across the country before they would take up an early years place.

The Alliance said the survey findings showed how split parents are over whether or not to send their children back to childcare, and highlights the huge pressure that the early years sector in England is facing over the coming months.

Commenting on the results, Neil Leitch, chief executive of the Alliance, said, 'With most childcare providers limited as to how many children they can care for safely, and many predicting that parental demand for places will be lower still, many nurseries, pre-schools and childminders are going to face a real struggle for survival during this incredibly difficult period. It is no exaggeration to say that the very future of the childcare sector is at risk if the Government doesn’t get its act together and provide the support that providers need.'

Key findings – parent survey (4,490 responses)

• Just 45 per cent of parents whose childcare providers are planning on opening 1 June are planning to take up their place - 42 per cent are not, while 13 per cent are still undecided.
• 21 per cent of those who are planning to take up their childcare place on 1 June expect to take up less hours than they did previously.
• 28 per cent of parents rated the clarity of the government’s rationale for reopening childcare settings as ‘1’ on a rating scale of 1 out of 10.

The most commonly cited reasons for those not taking up their place were: 'I do not think it’s safe for my child' (74 per cent), ‘I do not think it’s safe for my wider family (63 per cent), and ‘I do not think it’s safe for the staff at our childcare setting / our childminder’ (58 per cent).

When asked what would need to happen to take up their place, the most commonly-cited answers among parents not taking up their place were:

• A sustained fall in the number of coronavirus cases across the country (79 per cent)
• More information from the Government on the science underpinning the decision to reopen childcare settings (58 per cent)
• A sustained fall in the number of coronavirus cases in the local area (55 per cent)

Key findings – provider survey (6,300 responses)

The provider survey, which had 6,300 responses, found that:

• 65 per cent of childcare providers are planning to reopen more widely on 1 June, while 21 per cent are not planning to do so and 15 per cent are unsure.
• 50 per cent of providers expect demand for places to be less than the number of children they can care for safely when they do reopen (27 per cent expect it to be the same, 11 per cent expect it to be more and 11 per cent don't know.).
• 69 per cent expect to operate at a loss over the next six months (26 per cent expect to break even and 4 per cent expect to make a profit).

Of those childcare providers not planning to reopen on 1 June:

The most commonly-cited reasons for not opening were:

• ‘Don’t feel it’s safe for staff families/own family’ (64 per cent)
• ‘Don’t feel it’s safe for children’ (62 per cent) and
• ‘Don’t feel it’s safe for staff/myself’ (56 per cent)

When asked when they are planning to reopen, the most common responses were: 

• September (42 per cent)
• July (20 per cent)
• I / we have no idea yet (18 per cent)

When asked what extra support, if any, they want the Government to supply the early years sector, most common replies among all providers were:

• Clearer Government guidance on operating safely (70 per cent)
• Guarantee of continuation of early entitlement funding for children not attending (67 per cent)
• Financial support for coronavirus-related operating costs, such as cleaning (63 per cent)

Claire Kenyon, owner of The Children’s Garden in Norwich, and The Children’s Garden in Stamford, said, 'I have been losing money by staying open to key worker families so while I’m relieved to be able to open, I do feel a deep sense of responsibility to the staff and families that come. In Norwich I’m close to the hospital, so lots of NHS staff. We’re putting measures in place, but luckily for us we have five acres to spread out into, and there are indications that being outdoors will help to slow the spread. We’re still struggling to get hand gel, and any PPE is eye wateringly expensive. We have had no help in procuring any of these items. 

"There is the general feeling in the early years profession that we are invisible. Schools are thanked daily, yet they’ve been given extra funding and have been able to claim furlough for some staff. We’ve had no extra money, furlough with financial caveats, no information and no thanks. There’s talk of strikes, people are selling up, and leaving the profession in droves. The pay is poor, the work is hard, exhausting and complex, we are taking on more and more responsibility from other sectors with no financial remuneration. 

'Lots of staff are frightened about coming back to work. We can’t social distance, yet we’ve been told we don’t need PPE. We can’t help thinking that this is unlikely. Children can carry Covid-19. We’ve seen U-turns from the Government over the past few months which has compromised our faith in their advice. There is long-term cynicism at a senior professional level that has been exacerbated by the country’s leadership in recent weeks.'

Mr Leitch added, ‘While early years settings have worked incredibly hard over recent weeks either to prepare to reopen, or to continue supporting their families remotely, the Government’s attitude towards them has been frankly appalling: it has refused to reverse its last-minute decision to restrict providers’ ability to access furlough funding; it has refused to offer any financial support to help early years providers meet the additional costs of operating safely during this outbreak, while providing thousands of pounds to schools for the very same purpose; and it has refused to commit to any kind of transitional funding to help the sector get through this period of significantly reduced demand.

‘Although much focus to date has been on the reopening of primary schools, with more than a million children normally accessing early years care and education, there is no doubt that early years providers will play a pivotal role in the overall recovery of the economy, and the ability of society to return to some kind of normality.

‘It is vital, therefore, that the Government takes the steps needed to safeguard the future of the early years sector. That means not only providing the clear, unambiguous reassurance that parents – and providers – need to feel confident that it is safe for children to return to childcare, but crucially, committing to a significant financial support package to help ensure that childcare providers are able to stay afloat throughout this challenging period and beyond.’

PROVIDER COMMENTS

‘I have been extremely scared about all the decisions I have had to make very quickly to support 30 staff and over 200 children and families. This has been a very stressful time, and my family and staff team have worked very hard to keep going. 

‘The changes to Government guidance that are being published are not always clear. We as providers really need clear guidelines on what we can and cannot do in order to prevent the spread of the virus so we do not have a spike again. It is very hard to social distance children as they need cuddles and interactions. 

‘Times are so hard for small businesses and I am very worried for what the future holds. We are in a very difficult situation and it's heartbreaking we might lose our businesses. I’ve had to make decisions I never thought I would have to make.’ 

Bianca Johnson, director of Shiny Stars Day Nursery in Stoke on Trent

‘We are looking forward to having our children and staff back at nursery. We have had weekly meetings to plan and forecast for all eventualities and are ready with social distancing measures and a full and comprehensive set of provisions for staff and parents to support our re-opening from June.

‘However, guidance has been very limited and slow to arrive. There has also been very little guidance for parents and we have been supporting parents from other settings to make sense of the current situation. 

‘There has also been total confusion about the use and allocation for early entitlement funding.’ 

Meera Bhogal, owner and founder of Oak Lee Montessori School in Pinner, Middlesex

‘Apart from a short period where I was ill myself (suspected Covid but no test), I have remained open to key workers. However, I have been disappointed in the lack of support from the Government for the unique situation that childminders are in. It has been left to local authorities as to how they use Covid funding - and while some areas have received £100 per key worker child per week or more, our local council have offered nothing.

‘In hindsight it would have been much less risk to my family to close and continue to receive the government funding than to remain open, battle with legislation and risk our health - however, I am glad I have stayed open. 

‘There are many childminders panicking now and even some closing down due to the fear of the unknown, but the children we have in every day are a delight and have kept me sane through a very testing time.’

Victoria Baker, of Victoria’s Childminding in Kedington, Suffolk

‘The practicalities of social distancing children of such a young age is hard. Children want to play together so highly skilled practitioners need to set out various activities for the encouragement of distancing children. Resources must be risk-assessed to remove and reduce the risk of any spread of the virus. Many additional procedures have been implemented to meet the government guidelines.

'In order for early years settings to implement as much social distancing and minimise risk, there needs to be a substantial amount of financial support laid out.’

Donna Barnes, senior manager at Bridge House Nursery, Pre-school and Out of School Club in West Yorkshire

PARENTS' COMMENTS

'It is too early to expect children to adapt to the new environment. Older children would be able to follow social distancing rules, younger children won't - this will, in turn, have an impact on their wellbeing. Not enough information is available on the transmission of the virus between children. This is putting adults and peers at risk of contracting the virus, causing another peak.'

 Lisa Boyd, Carlisle, parent of a four-year-old

'The Government has been too unclear about the data behind the decision to open childcare settings. I also feel too little concern has been given to parents' concerns and for themselves, their wider family members and for their children - in particular, when parents themselves have underlying conditions that put them at a greater risk.'

Deborah Tilley, Alsager in Cheshire, parent of a four-year-old and a five-month-old

'I know my son’s nursery will do their upmost to be nurturing and give the best possible care and education under the circumstances. However, I also know that it will not be the same place as when he left. 

'Nurseries are being asked to do the impossible. I am worried about the lasting impacts of reopening too soon,expecting children to limit their play and not be able to have that physical closeness with other children and adults may be detrimental to their mental health.'

Chloe Pullara, Hoddesdon in Hertfordshire, parent of a four-year-old

'It’s not safe to open early years and primary schools - we strongly disagree with the Government’s view to ease the lockdown before it’s safe to do so. We will not use our little children to test the rollout. Keeping them safe at home is the best thing to do for now.'

Dominique Tahir, Dogmersfield in Hampshire, parent of a four-year-old and a two-year-old

'I believe that the direct risk to young children is very low, therefore we are happy to send our children back. 

'Our setting is making a cautious start, with very small groups, and shorter sessions avoiding mealtimes. This seems like a very sensible approach. I understand the concerns of staff but feel reassured that the pre-school will be implementing strict protocols.

'It's important to balance the risks with the benefits - this is what we all do, every second of every day, regardless of the pandemic.

'I'm also on our pre-school committee, so I am very aware of the huge amounts of work (and stress!) preparing for reopening.'

Tracey Davids, Cambridge, parent of a three-year-old and a five-year-old