How do you get the most from the staff in your nursery?

Monday, October 24th, 2011

Staff are the core of your business, and one of the primary ways you are judged by your customers. As a result, tricky factors like team morale, attitude and approach are almost as important as sector specific skills and qualifications. This is becoming increasingly difficult in an industry with pressure on profits and the resulting impact on wage rates and working hours.

A lack of funds can restrict managers from offering pay rises or investing in staff training, yet the Government continues to strive towards an early years workforce trained to a minimum of Level 3 by 2015. With the majority of the workforce driven by a vocational passion rather than financial gain, is this changing the way you manage your team?

Has it become hard to finance staff training or are you still accessing funding? Do you have difficulty retaining staff due to not being able to offer pay rises or promotions?

Have you found productive methods that keep staff in your setting happy? Do you organise regular meetings\out-of-work social events to maintain good team morale and receive feedback from staff?

Join the discussion by leaving your comments below.

Cuts hit 47 children’s centres, MP’s survey finds

Wednesday, October 19th, 2011
Children's Centre to close
There are about 3,600 children’s centres in England, half of which are in the most deprived areas.

At least 47 children’s centres in England have either been closed or are being earmarked for closure because of funding cuts, research shows.

The survey by shadow children’s minister Sharon Hodgson also suggests eight out of 10 of those who responded have cut funding in the past year.

A further nine out of 10 are planning to do so in 2012.

The government said there was enough money in the system to maintain the network of children’s centres.
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Coalition to boost childcare pot by £300m to target women working under 16 hours

Friday, October 7th, 2011
Childcare support for 80,000 families
80,000 families will benefit from the £300 million Government childcare support

Parents on low incomes who are working less than 16 hours a week will be eligible for childcare support from 2013, under new government plans.

Some £300m has been allocated for the move, worth up to £175 a week for one child and £300 for two or more.

Ministers say it will benefit 80,000 families receiving universal credit.
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Almost half of working parents ‘completely unaware’ of childcare vouchers

Friday, October 7th, 2011
Childcare Vouchers

Parents are not making the most of their income by failing to claim childcare vouchers

Working parents are unaware of the financial benefits that could be available to them through their employer, according to a survey commissioned by Co-Operative Employee Benefits.

The survey, which was carried out to highlight issues facing working mothers and fathers when making childcare arrangements, found 45% of the 2,000 parents polled were “completely unaware” of childcare vouchers and how they could save them money.

The survey also showed 33% of parents polled were not even offered childcare vouchers by their employer; if they were, then 22% said that they would definitely take up the scheme.
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