Issue - meetings

Early Years and Children's Centres

Meeting: 27/07/2015 - Cabinet (Item 43)

43 Early Years and Children's Centres pdf icon PDF 165 KB

Additional documents:

Minutes:

Councillor Tony Smith introduced a report by the Director of Children’s Services, which reminded the Cabinet of the Wirral Early Years and Children Centre Review presented to its meeting on 11 September 2014 made recommendations about the development of a new model of service delivery, supported by an outcomes framework to ensure that Wirral’s youngest children have the best start in life, evidenced through their readiness for school (Minute No. 54 refers.). 

 

The Review had been prompted by the need to save £1.5 million from the Council’s Early Years Review and Children’s Centre budget, reducing the budget to £3.080 million.  The Review had also recognised that the service had not been reviewed since 2002, although the resources available to deliver this service in recent years had reduced significantly.  The service had also required a radical shift in thinking to meet current policy and legislative requirements. 

 

The Director reported that since the Review had been published there had been even greater emphasis placed on improving children’s readiness for school through, the Council Plan: A 2020 Vision, Wirral’s recent designation as a Vanguard site to deliver joined up health and care services and the recently published Ofsted Early Years report, which particularly emphasised narrowing the gap in outcomes for children from disadvantaged backgrounds. 

 

This Cabinet report was operational in nature.  It requested that the Cabinet reviewed the feedback from the consultation about the proposed changes and authorised officers to take a series of steps to ensure the service was in a stable and financially viable position.  It would provide a platform for future developments to meet ambitious outcomes for our youngest children and their families, as summarised in point 6.0 of the report.

 

The decision made by the Cabinet on 11 September 2014 that officers should commence consultation on a proposed new model for delivering early years services had been called-in under the Council’s scrutiny arrangements which had resulted in the consultation being published for public feedback on 16 February 2015.  The consultation had closed on 27 March 2015, and the report provided the Cabinet with the feedback received.

 

The report made a number of recommendations to the Cabinet about the delivery of early years and children’s centre services.  This included the approach to delivering outcome-focused provision in an integrated way with partners in local communities through three hubs, six satellite buildings and services commissioned through the two nursery schools.

 

The report recommended to the Cabinet that a weighted funded model be adopted which took account of levels of deprivation and need across pre-determined reach footprints within constituency areas, that this supported a flexible and well trained workforce and that services were commissioned and delivered across a range of different disciplines, including the voluntary community and faith sector. 

 

The Cabinet noted that the recommendations, informed by the consultation findings, could deliver the agreed savings of £1.5 million.  However, there would be slippage in 2015/6 which at this stage was likely to result in a shortfall of £1.2 million.  This portion would be  ...  view the full minutes text for item 43