Mothers who have spoken out
about difficulties they face in finding and paying for
childcare in Burngreave have been acknowledged, in part,
by the creation of the Burngreave Childcare steering
group.
A Burngreave mother (who withheld her
identity as she feared limiting her options even further)
told me: “Basically, there are not enough childminders
and the few that there are have limited places and are
unable to offer a flexible service.”
The steering group aims to sustain and
develop existing and new childcare provisions. Sally
Penn, from Burngreave Surestart and a member of the
steering group said: “The idea is to raise the
profile of childcare and see if it meets the needs of
the community, and we believe at this point in time
it doesn’t.”
In addition to difficulties in finding
places for their children, mothers have told me of the
expense of childcare: “One childminder had a reasonable
fee but had so many other charges for picking up, having
lunch, dropping off etc, it nearly doubled the fee.
Another justified charging a lot by saying parents can
claim back on Working Families Tax Credit. But not all
parents can, especially those who have no income in
the first place!”
The steering group
aims to ensure existing childcare providers work
together and are not in competition. They have
established a network between the Black Women’s
Resource Centre, Ellesmere Children’s Centre
and the Yemeni Community Association, organisations
who also receive funding from Burngreave New Deal
for Communities (BNDfC), where fees are standardised
and subsidised so parents can choose which service
is better for their child rather than which is
cheapest. |
Another Burngreave mother, Sioned-Mair
Richards, pointed out the difficulties that childminders
themselves face with finances: “There is a terrible
dichotomy between parents finding it expensive and the
fact that childminders are paid a pittance – it’s
below minimum wage. I think there ought to be some sort
of state top-up for child minders so that they have
a reasonable basic wage.”
Tanya Bailey, a single parent who has
just started work, told me how she has looked everywhere,
but cannot find childcare at weekends. “I’m
really stuck. I haven’t worked before. It means
a lot to me to get a job and then I can’t find
any childcare. It doesn’t give single parents
like me much encouragement to find work.”
Chair of BNDfC Partnership Board, Rose
Ardron said: “We are very aware that for many
in the area, childcare is a huge barrier to access to
learning, training and employment and wider opportunities.
We are determined, as a Board, to address this over
the coming year.”
BNDfC’s early ideas to address the immediate need
for childcare in Burngreave include a mobile crèche
and childcare vouchers for parents entering employment,
training and education.
However, parents also need childcare before
they enter training and employment, to increase self-esteem
and allow them time to socialise and build confidence
to prepare them for making changes to their lives.
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