What's happening to Kent's pre-schools and nurseries?

More nurseries and pre-schools in Kent could be facing closure as costs continue to rise and recruitment becomes even harder.

According to Ofsted, the number of childcare providers in England dropped by around 4,000 between March 2021 and March 2022, the largest decline since 2016.

And there are fears this could be about to get much worse.

Neil Leitch, chief executive officer of the Early Years Alliance, said: "For years now, nurseries, pre-schools and childminding settings have been grossly underfunded by the government.

"This has left many with no choice but to raise their prices, resulting in sky-high costs for parents.

"Over recent months and years, this situation has become progressively worse, with the combined impact of a sustained lack of funding, the long-last effects of the pandemic and rising business costs – including energy bills – leaving more and more settings with no choice but to close their doors for good.

"As a result, many parents are being left without the vital childcare they need, while many young children are at risk of missing out on crucial early education.

"The early years sector is now at crisis point. Without urgent investment from the government, we are sure to see many more closures in the months and years to come."

Providers and parents across Kent are already starting to feel the reality of this situation.

Charlie Baker has a four-year-old daughter who has just left a pre-school in Cranbrook which is under threat of closure. This will leave just one in the village.

She said: "If it shuts so many children will have nowhere to go, as all other places nearby have a waiting list.

"To end up with one pre-school in the local area servicing so many families is not sufficient. Parents are really going to struggle."

Rainbow Pre-School in Carriers Road was founded in 1982, and uses a mobile unit in the grounds of Cranbrook Primary School, next to the Sure Start Children's Centre.

This was a temporary arrangement, which is now coming to an end as the primary school has requested the building back, due to growing numbers.

Parents were sent a letter explaining how they were unable to find an alternative place to use within the town.

It also states the pre-school will close on Friday, February 10.

Ms Baker said: "Despite the best efforts of the trustees, they have been unable to find another place for the school.

"It has left them with no choice but to inform families that they will be closing for good."

Currently there are 26 pupils on role at the pre-school, which is said to increase to 36 after Christmas.

Hedgehogs nursery in Wayfield, Chatham, has already been forced to close due to lack of funding.

They opened only a year ago and employ 44 members of staff.

Co-owner Laura Hollands says the school, which accommodates 52 children, was "no longer financially viable".

She said: "Things came to a head and sadly we had to make a difficult decision. We are required to have a certain level of qualified staff. At the end of the day the pre-school government funding is not enough to cover salaries.

"And we are competing with the likes of Amazon and Aldi, where you don't need a qualification, get higher wages and don't have to have the responsibility of looking after children."

Another pre-school has started a JustGiving page, in a desperate attempt to stay running.

Eccles Pre-School in Bull Lane, Aylesford, launched the fundraiser last week after struggling with the impact of the cost of living crisis.

It has been running for almost 50 years and at least 24 families would be affected if it were to close.

Amy Mckirdy, whose three-year-old daughter Ava attends, says it is an "integral part of the community".

"This is devastating for the village, the parents and staff, but mostly the children," she said.

"I am a key-worker and rely on this childcare to enable me to work. Ava has been there since she was two and my son went before her.

"Both have loved every second there and the current staff are lovely, caring, incredible and hardworking people who are a big part of her life."

Fundraising would usually take place throughout the year to keep a steady amount of money for the school to run.

However, due to Covid no such events have taken place.

Naomi Ruth, Eccles Pre-School manager, said: "The staff really care about the children even when they leave to go to primary.

"The village has no other pre-school and due to some parents not driving we are their only childcare provider."

But it's not just funding that's the issue, many pre-schools are being driven out of their premises where they operate from.

Dawn to Dusk Day Nursery, currently resides at the Orchard Academy in Swanley.

They are struggling to find an alternate venue as their current building falls into a state of disrepair.

The building is being rebuilt as part of the government's £1bn school programme, however the nursery is not being factored into these plans.

Swanley Town Council recognised the importance of the facility to local families and offered up The Birches car park as a potential venue.

A planning application that was submitted to Sevenoaks Council in July was refused, due to a significant amount of the development being within the green belt.

In its application statement, the nursery said: "We are the biggest children’s day care facility in all of Swanley, with an excellent reputation created by our lovely staff and families we look after.

"We are in a position where the entire children’s nursery could disappear overnight next year in April as a local Swanley family-run business of 26 years.

"Twenty four jobs, all of whom are local residents, apprentices' training cut off, local families who need nearby childcare for them to be able to work, will all go, and without any replacement or spaces elsewhere to cater for them."

The applicant, Akhil Patel, and partner Rakhee, run the nursery. He fears if he can't find a suitable new home, more than 100 families in the area could be left without childcare.

"We can't compete with the sort of money property developers put forward, we are just a nursery," he explained.

"We are punching so far above our weight. We have got to find the money and somewhere to build this."

Most pre-schools and nurseries are committee-run – made up of local residents, parents and staff.

Before a child turns three, parents will have to pay per session, this might be for the morning, afternoon or the whole day.

After the child's third birthday, the school can claim funding from the government.

This allows them to provide 15 to 30 hours each week of free education and childcare – depending on whether the family is eligible.

But with a limit to the funding available and inflation rising, it's becoming increasing difficult for places to stay afloat.

As Jonathan Broadbery, director of policy and communications at National Day Nurseries Association, explains: “With the cost-of-living pressures and the winter months around the corner nurseries across Kent and the South East are seriously worried about sustainability.

“Most nurseries are small businesses and, just like households, these are hugely impacted by rocketing fuel costs, food prices and inflation.

"At the same time, they are chronically underfunded by the government for the early education and care they provide.

“The government increased funding rates per child in Kent by only 3.7% this year, but inflation has been higher than 10%."

He added: “Nurseries are more likely to close in areas of deprivation, which is where they are most needed.

"This is because these early years settings are more reliant on funded-only places, meaning they are more affected by the shortfall in funding.

“But children from lower income families are most at risk of falling behind their peers by the time they start school and never catch up.

"High quality early education is the best way to support them. They must be able to access places to give them the best chance in life.”