Decision details

Wraparound childcare was childcare that ‘wraps around’ the conventional school day. It could also refer to provision in the school holidays. This provision can be offered by schools and private, voluntary and independent (PVI) providers (including childminders and early years settings) and could be run on a school site or at another setting in the area. It should not require parents to pick their children up from school and drop them off at another location.

Many schools already offered enrichment and extra-curricular activities before and after the school day. The principal aim of the Wrap Around Childcare programme was to ensure childcare provision is regular, has longer hours and is more dependable for working parents.

Local authorities were responsible for delivering on the primary objective of the wraparound programme in their local area. That is, to increase parent/carer access to the labour market by increasing the number of wraparound childcare places for primary-aged children available and taken up between 8am and 6pm (or equivalent, depending on local labour market patterns). Local Authorities were tasked with using the funding available to them to create additional places and ensure existing places are available for the hours that are required, to:

·       meet current demand – both in terms of number of places and hours available;

·       ensure supply to build further demand; and

·       where required, as traditional models of wraparound may not support sustainable provision, test new approaches to identify what works in their local area and identify the level of risk.

RESOLVED –

That the Executive Board:

•       Notes the content of the report in relation to the Government’s National   Wrap Around Childcare Programme.

•       Approves the delivery plan and use of associated funding for Blackburn with Darwen’s Wrap Around Childcare Programme.