Parents hail council move to relax cap on nursery places

Families claim partial victory in fight for free places

PARENTS who use private nurseries in Scotland’s biggest city are more likely to receive their entitlement to free childcare places in future.

Glasgow City Council is to relax the cap on the number of children it funds who attend private nurseries that are in partnership with the council.

Under SNP legislation, families are entitled to a mandatory 600 hours of funded early learning and childcare for three and four-year-olds.

However, a survey in 2014 by the campaign group Fair Funding For Our Kids showed hundreds of children in Glasgow were unable to secure their entitlement.

Under council policy the number of funded places was strictly controlled, but officials say from now on nurseries already in partnership can bid for more.

There will be no change for private nurseries that are not in partnership with the council.

Carolyn Lochhead, a spokeswoman for the campaign group Fair Funding For Our Kids, welcomed the change, but urged all councils to follow Glasgow’s lead.

And she called for more wraparound provision in state sector nurseries to ensure working parents were better catered for.

She said: “An end to capping was one of our key aims when the campaign was set up and it is fantastic news that more parents in Glasgow should be able to get a funded partnership nursery place for their children.

“We now need to see this mirrored nationally, but Glasgow also needs to focus on making all nursery provision useable for working parents.

“With two-thirds of nursery places nationwide provided for just three hours and 10 minutes a day there is a long way to go before childcare is fit for purpose.”

A spokeswoman for Glasgow City Council confirmed the cap had now been relaxed, but stressed it only applied to families resident in Glasgow using private nurseries already in partnership with them.

She said: “As part of our expansion of flexible access to early learning and childcare we are no longer capping the places commissioned in our partnership nurseries for Glasgow resident three and four year olds.

“We continually monitor and evaluate supply and demand in our nurseries, but also purchase additional places in private nurseries as part of a tender contract that runs until 2017.”

Meanwhile, it emerged that millions of pounds given to councils to pay for free childcare has not been spent on the programme.

An official report revealed local authorities were given an extra £329m to fund the scheme, but they spent or plan to spend just £189m.

In a debate in the Scottish Parliament it emerged talks have now taken place between Scottish Government ministers and council officials over the apparent £140 underspend.

Council umbrella body Cosla said the analysis was “misleading”, but Childcare Minister Mark McDonald insisted the figures showed the Government had fully funded its childcare policy.

He said: “Where the money allocated does not all appear to have been spent as intended, it would be for local authorities to account for their own spending.”

‘‘ An end to capping was one of our key aims when the campaign was set up and it is fantastic news

MOTHER and baby are said to be doing well after a 60kg rhino calf arrived at a Scottish safari park.

Bonnie, pictured with her mother Dot, 16, is the latest in the family’s brood at Blair Drummond Safari Park in Stirlingshire. Her father Graham is also 16.

Visitors to the attraction are quietly viewing the baby’s progress in the rhino house.

Ailsa McCormick, head keeper of the Large Mammals Department, said: “Dot was incredibly relaxed about the birth and stood well to ensure the calf suckled shortly after the birth.” Picture: Dave Warren