Childcare campaigners have welcomed comments by the head of the Metropolitan Police in support of Sure Start children’s centres.
In an interview with ITV London, Metropolitan Police commissioner Sir Paul Stephenson said that high-quality childcare, such as schemes offered through Sure Start, were “equally important” in the fight against crime as police work.
While police work can suppress crime, he said, long-term support through initiatives like Sure Start is needed to tackle the root cause.
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Nurseries are charging parents for government-funded childcare and reimbursing them at a later date, despite a legal duty to provide care free at the point of delivery, CYP Now has learned.
Significant gaps in the provision of emergency, out-of-school, and holiday childcare provision across Wales have been highlighted in a review.
Plans to build up to 1,300 playgrounds have been axed as part of the Government’s public spending cuts.
Dame Clare Tickell has launched a consultation on her independent review of the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS).
Work and Pensions Secretary Iain Duncan Smith has denounced families’ dependence on welfare for allowing children to remain trapped in poverty, as the government set out its proposals for reforming the benefits system.
