I work in a more "well off" outer London Borough (though many residents would question this - housing ranges from 7+bedroom detached mansion to 1 bedroom high rise flat!). Anyway in December we were told by Early Years that children would receive funding in the term after they were 3. We have now received a letter to say that 'Sorry' due to powers that be, from September 2003 Nursery Education Grant will only be available to children in the term before their 4th birthday. Attached to the letter is a table showing when children will be eligible to receive the NEG. This goes up to 2005. I.e. children will not receive the grant until they are nearly four, irrespective of when they were born.
Have I missed the plot somewhere or have the Government not pledged a 'free' place to all 3 and 4 year olds from April 2004.
Many providers and parents are counting on this pledge to give much needed additional funding.
On a personal level, I shall be writing to my Early Years Team, the Local Council**, Councillors, MP's and Government Departments in protest and as a member of my branch PLA committee will be encouraging others to do the same. What do others feel about the Nursery Education Grant? We seem have been sucked into the 'Education System' with the Early Learning Goals and submission of Profiles without any thought to additional funding.
Our termly funding is the same as last year but wages, rents and other costs have all gone up and how will overstretched groups cope in the Autumn with the increase in minimum wage and more recent National Insurance increases. Wouldn't we all love to pay our staff more - but how?
**I don't know how other areas operate their budget but (I am led to believe that..) the 'Nursery Education Grant' is not sent from the Government to local councils as an NEG package but it is part of a whole range of 'social services'. So if councils feel the money is needed elsewhere, the NEG may suffer. This is particularly felt in boroughs which have tried to manage their budget well and not overspend - their funding may have been cut, and they don't want to increase council tax - Sorry getting political here!
My main point is - have any other areas found their funding cut. What can we do about it. We are constantly being told how important Early Years are, but get nothing for it and little recognition of the job we do. I'm just tired of hearing the bickering in small groups and want to make the bickering more widely heard and our profession recognised for the valuable job we are doing.
I'd love to hear your views. Let's finally start a National Campaign for Greater Recognition!
2
NEG - 3 or 4 years old?
Started by Guest_Jan_*, Apr 05 2003 12:08 AM
63 replies to this topic
#2
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Posted 05 April 2003 - 12:47 PM
Hi Jan,
I agree with you about the vagueness in NEG funding for "every three year old by 2004". I had thought it would be when the child turned three, but that isn't the case, is it? In East Sussex, children are eligible from the term before they turn four, and is now payable for 14 weeks of the term (it used to be 11). It is also going up to £7.56 next term.
I agree with you about the vagueness in NEG funding for "every three year old by 2004". I had thought it would be when the child turned three, but that isn't the case, is it? In East Sussex, children are eligible from the term before they turn four, and is now payable for 14 weeks of the term (it used to be 11). It is also going up to £7.56 next term.
#3
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Key Dude
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Posted 05 April 2003 - 01:07 PM
Hi -
It would be interesting to hear from all the practitioners what the situation is with their NEG. Do you get it from the term after your children are 3 or the term before your children are 4?
It would be interesting to hear from all the practitioners what the situation is with their NEG. Do you get it from the term after your children are 3 or the term before your children are 4?
'There are no ordinary people. It is immortals whom we work with, joke with, marry, snub and exploit.'
#4
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Becky
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Posted 06 April 2003 - 09:39 AM
Down in Devon, we get funding for children the term before they are 4 years old. This has been a lifesaver to our charity run, committee run Pre-School. Although funding from when they are 3 years old would be excellent.
Becky Tucker
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Posted 06 April 2003 - 06:24 PM
In my area, Hampshire we have had a letter stating that
from September 2003 ALL three and four year old children will be offered free part time nursery education
children are eligable from the start of the grant period following thier third birthday
upto five sessions (2 1/2 hours) for 11 weeks until the end of the grant period when they turn five
All children will be eligable regardless of whether they live in an area of disadvantage or have a special needs.
KazzE
from September 2003 ALL three and four year old children will be offered free part time nursery education
children are eligable from the start of the grant period following thier third birthday
upto five sessions (2 1/2 hours) for 11 weeks until the end of the grant period when they turn five
All children will be eligable regardless of whether they live in an area of disadvantage or have a special needs.
KazzE
#6
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Posted 06 April 2003 - 08:08 PM
Hi there !Just had to rush and check my paperwork in case I'd missed something ! Were we really getting the funding for 14 weeks per term now ?...... - no we're not ! But here in my part of Dorset we get the funding from the term following their 3rd birthday @ £7.56 per session.
Obviously that's very good for our pre-school, but so unfair for others in different areas who don't. It should be consistent throughout.
Bye,
Janice
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Posted 06 April 2003 - 09:21 PM
Hi -
Looks like Janice gets the trophy so far. I know in some places very close to us there are grants for children the term after they're three. But we do get the grant for the full 14 weeks.
Janice - welcome in by the way, and thanks for posting :D. Becky's from down your way - you'll have to introduce yourself to her!
Regards, Steve.
Looks like Janice gets the trophy so far. I know in some places very close to us there are grants for children the term after they're three. But we do get the grant for the full 14 weeks.
Janice - welcome in by the way, and thanks for posting :D. Becky's from down your way - you'll have to introduce yourself to her!
Regards, Steve.
'There are no ordinary people. It is immortals whom we work with, joke with, marry, snub and exploit.'
#8
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Posted 07 April 2003 - 08:20 AM
Here in Aberdeenshire, since August 2002, all children get a funded place in the term following their 3rd birthday. However, this is just £5.40 per child during term time which I thought was pretty good but obviously not that good! We charge £2.50 for non funded children which means the playgroup struggles financially for much of the year. <_<
Beau
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Carol
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#9
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Posted 07 April 2003 - 03:23 PM
Hi Janice,
Sorry,
I should have been clearer in my last posting; the NEG is payable up to 14 weeks as long as the total number of sessions does not exceed 55, eg if a child attends 3 sessions per week, then 3 x 14 = 42, ie less than 55, and we receive 42 x £7.56 (as of the increase for next term).
It may well be the case for you as the "Requirements for NEG 2001-2002" published by the DfES states:
"Where a provider's arrangements of sessions exceeds eleven weeks, the full term's grant is payable for a minimum of 55 sessions extending over no more than a fourteen week period" (page 23, para 113)
I think there is an error here, and it should read "maximum" ( that is in fact what our LEA documentation states).
You may find that this is the case for your NEG too; get in touch with the grant section of the EYDCP/LEA and check with them. You may be lucky :D
Sorry,
I should have been clearer in my last posting; the NEG is payable up to 14 weeks as long as the total number of sessions does not exceed 55, eg if a child attends 3 sessions per week, then 3 x 14 = 42, ie less than 55, and we receive 42 x £7.56 (as of the increase for next term).It may well be the case for you as the "Requirements for NEG 2001-2002" published by the DfES states:
"Where a provider's arrangements of sessions exceeds eleven weeks, the full term's grant is payable for a minimum of 55 sessions extending over no more than a fourteen week period" (page 23, para 113)
I think there is an error here, and it should read "maximum" ( that is in fact what our LEA documentation states).
You may find that this is the case for your NEG too; get in touch with the grant section of the EYDCP/LEA and check with them. You may be lucky :D
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Carol
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Posted 07 April 2003 - 03:33 PM
In Gloucestershire we get the grant for 11 weeks a term (33 weeks a year) then parents have to pay us for the weeks that the grant does not cover. We are in a disadvantaged area so our 3 years olds get the grant the first term after their third birthday. The grant is £7.01 per session.
Carol
Carol
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#11
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Posted 08 April 2003 - 03:59 PM
janice, on Apr 6 2003, 08:08 PM, said:
Hi there !Just had to rush and check my paperwork in case I'd missed something ! Were we really getting the funding for 14 weeks per term now ?...... - no we're not ! But here in my part of Dorset we get the funding from the term following their 3rd birthday @ £7.56 per session.
Obviously that's very good for our pre-school, but so unfair for others in different areas who don't. It should be consistent throughout.
Bye,
Janice
:D :) 
#12
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Posted 26 April 2003 - 08:01 PM
Janice,
I've just received the SureStart's code of practice on the NEG and on page 8, para 28, it says,
"LEAs may wish to allow providers to spread these 55 sessions over a term of up to 14 weeks. In such circumstances it will, therefore, be possible for a provider to claim the full amount of funding in respect of children attending fewer than five sessions per week."
I should tackle your LEA!
I've just received the SureStart's code of practice on the NEG and on page 8, para 28, it says,
"LEAs may wish to allow providers to spread these 55 sessions over a term of up to 14 weeks. In such circumstances it will, therefore, be possible for a provider to claim the full amount of funding in respect of children attending fewer than five sessions per week."
I should tackle your LEA!
#13 Guest_auntielynns123_*
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Posted 27 April 2003 - 07:50 PM
In my area of Gloucestershire, the local playgroup and school nursery work apply the grant in the second term after the childs 3rd brithday so suppose that is the same as the term before they are four! I know the playgroup work on an 11 week term not so sure about the school nursery (am sure they are open for 12 weeks) but they do not pass additional charges on to parents.
I was advised that the grant was £7.01 per 2.5 hour session.
I was advised that the grant was £7.01 per 2.5 hour session.
#14 Guest_Jan_*
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Posted 28 April 2003 - 07:51 PM
Hi Helen
I read through the new document from Sure Start but hadn't registered the significance of that paragraph. So would you agree the guidelines imply that each child is entitled to 165 free sessions a year. So if a 'funded' child only attends 3 sessions a week the 'pro rata' payment (which my borough, and I'm sure others must do) is equivalent to 99 sessions a year (3 sessions x 11 weeks x 3 terms). Most groups open for more than 33 weeks, so if a group opens for 36 weeks then the new Sure Start guidelines are suggesting that the funding is spread to allow the child who attends 3 sessions for 36 weeks to be funded for the whole 108 (annual) sessions.
Does that make sense? If so then who's going to join me in the campaign to get what we're entitled to? The guidelines imply that the funding is available - so what is happening to all the money which is not being passed on to us?
Also on page 19 of the new document, paragraph 96 states that "Sufficient funding has been transferred into EFSS to give each authority a minimum level of funding for each three year old place of £416 per term (£1,248 per annum). We are still only getting £406 per term.
I also think we should get the whole termly payment at the beginning of the term and make any adjustments for children leaving or joining at the end of the term. That way WE could be earning interest on the money (and not the powers that be) and be able to use our budget better.
National 'Sure Start' month (what was wrong with 'Childcare'?) is in June - what better time to make our point?
I read through the new document from Sure Start but hadn't registered the significance of that paragraph. So would you agree the guidelines imply that each child is entitled to 165 free sessions a year. So if a 'funded' child only attends 3 sessions a week the 'pro rata' payment (which my borough, and I'm sure others must do) is equivalent to 99 sessions a year (3 sessions x 11 weeks x 3 terms). Most groups open for more than 33 weeks, so if a group opens for 36 weeks then the new Sure Start guidelines are suggesting that the funding is spread to allow the child who attends 3 sessions for 36 weeks to be funded for the whole 108 (annual) sessions.
Does that make sense? If so then who's going to join me in the campaign to get what we're entitled to? The guidelines imply that the funding is available - so what is happening to all the money which is not being passed on to us?
Also on page 19 of the new document, paragraph 96 states that "Sufficient funding has been transferred into EFSS to give each authority a minimum level of funding for each three year old place of £416 per term (£1,248 per annum). We are still only getting £406 per term.
I also think we should get the whole termly payment at the beginning of the term and make any adjustments for children leaving or joining at the end of the term. That way WE could be earning interest on the money (and not the powers that be) and be able to use our budget better.
National 'Sure Start' month (what was wrong with 'Childcare'?) is in June - what better time to make our point?
#15
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Posted 29 April 2003 - 06:50 PM
Hi Helen, (and everyone else!)Thanks Helen for your message - yes I saw that paragraph too and will contact the local borough about it sometime soon. One thing's for sure, it's going to be very interesting to see how different boroughs compare on this !!!!!!!!
In case Steve has been wondering why things have gone very quiet from this area of Dorset - it's because I've spent the holidays re-doing my planning and I seem to have increased my work-load ten fold. Which makes me think that I havn't done it quite right !!!!!
Anyway, best get back to it - it's become a full time job for me now !!!
Bye for now,
Janice
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