Engagement report – parental childcare sufficiency project

Findings

The project page had 3,908 page visitors. Of that number:

• 1,714 people clicked for further information
• 1,158 of them completed 1,164 surveys

This is a 30% visitor to respondent conversion rate, which is positive. Most respondents used an email link they had received directly (883) or came from social media (220). This reflects the way the survey was promoted.

Of the 1,164 respondents, 1,106 (94.9%) did use childcare services and 58 (5.1%) did not use or intend to use any childcare services in Lincolnshire.

• the highest number of responses (208) came from parents and carers living in South Kesteven
• 207 from those in North Kesteven
• 191 in East Lindsey
• 153 in West Lindsey
• 120 responses from South Holland
• 109 from the City of Lincoln
• the lowest (60) number of responses came from parents and carers in Boston
• there were also 58 postcodes that could not be matched to a district

• most of the parents and carers responding (646) had children aged 4 to 11 primary school age and the parents of children aged 16 to 18 years old (12) were the least represented
• when asked if their child had special educational needs or disabilities (SEND) - 178 (16.1%) parents and carers said yes
• of these 178 parents and carers, 60 (34.3%) felt that the needs of their child or children with additional needs were not fully met and this was a barrier to accessing childcare provision. 30 (16.9%) said that a childcare provider had refused a place based on their child’s additional needs
• in response to the question ‘Have you been able to access all the childcare that you need?’ 745 respondents (67.4%) felt they didn’t need any extra childcare and 361 (32.6%) wanted extra childcare
• those 361 respondents were then asked what extra childcare they would like. The highest requests were for afterschool clubs and holiday clubs. With 152 and 154 requests, respectively. Breakfast club was next with 106 requests followed by:
  • day nursery places (99)
  • access to a childminder (84)
  • school nursery place (44)
  • preschool or playgroup (40)
  • home childcare or nanny (25) (respondents could tick more than one option)
• when asked about how they find information about childcare in their area, the majority (728) said that they use the internet, followed by 674 using word of mouth. Only 73 responses stated that they use noticeboards
• availability of places locally (163) was the main barrier highlighted by respondents to accessing the current childcare provision. Followed by places not being available at the times or the days needed (159) and cost (142)
• when analysing SEND comments, almost all (92.6%, 50) provided a negative response, two respondents (3.7%) provided a neutral response and two (3.7%) provided a mixed response
• the most frequently made comment related to a lack of any services for children with SEND (25, almost half), followed by a lack of support and wraparound care (10 each)
• a lack of local or any provision, funding for very minimal hours, mental health services or buildings and services that are equipped to accept children with specific needs were all highlighted. Alongside more training for staff, prohibitive costs, and the impact on parental and children’s wellbeing
• when asked if they were using government support to pay for their childcare, 699 (63.3%) said they were, 406 (36.7%) replied that they weren’t. Those that weren’t had a mix of reasons, amongst them lack of availability
• of the 406 that replied, 256 (63.2%) said they were not eligible, 78 (19.3%) were not aware of the benefits and 60 (14.8%) had other reasons for not claiming this benefit
• for the majority, 929 (84%) the main reason they access childcare is to be able to work. For 118 (10.7%) it was mainly to give their child opportunities to socialise with other children, 20 (1.8%) said the main reason for accessing it was to be able to study
• respondents were asked how they would currently describe the cost of childcare they are using, 630 (57%) described it as expensive or high-cost, 405 (36.6%) described it as reasonable or affordable and 53 (4.8%) as inexpensive or low-cost. 18 didn’t answer
• when asked if they had any further comments on childcare in Lincolnshire there were 164 comments about the lack of availability in some areas. There were comments about issues due to specific nurseries closing. The next area of concern was wraparound care (123), either where it wasn’t available or where provision is not available early enough and late enough to enable parents to work full-time. This was closely followed by comments about cost

Conclusions and next steps

• this survey was published at the same time as a childcare sufficiency survey, gathering data from all current childcare providers in Lincolnshire
• analysis is now underway to interpret all feedback received from both the parent and the provider surveys
• an internal report will be written and presented to our directorate leadership team and councillors, with recommendations. Following approval it will be available on our support for childcare providers page
• the childcare delivery strategy will be updated. The strategy outlines the next steps that ensure the local authority meets their statutory duties to secure sufficient childcare to meet the demands of parents that work, study or train