DebbieW Posted July 3, 2013 Share Posted July 3, 2013 What a horrible day! financial forecasts = doom and gloom. I'm not liking the options that face us but have no choice but to go along with them. . Any one else finding themselves in a similar situation? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sunnyday Posted July 3, 2013 Share Posted July 3, 2013 Sending hugs and empathy Debbie...... Financial situation here is far from 'rosy' Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mollypiper Posted July 3, 2013 Share Posted July 3, 2013 Unfortunately yes. 18 children going to school this year and not enough left to keep all staff everyday especially on one day when there are 10 children to 5 staff. Our trouble this year is that many of our children don't get their funding until January and can't pay for extra days until then. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rea Posted July 3, 2013 Share Posted July 3, 2013 My problems; manager stepping down so need to find replacement for September, no functioning committee, low funds and only NEF to come but thats in September. I feel overwhelmed by the committee stuff and am gearing up for a battle. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
playgroup1 Posted July 3, 2013 Share Posted July 3, 2013 Mollypiper - can you not register for the 2 year old funding so that parents on low income could get their place funded? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fredbear Posted July 3, 2013 Share Posted July 3, 2013 (edited) Sending you a virtual hug as your post says you need one. Think it's tough out there for everyone at the moment. Always trying to jiggle the finances, as well as looking to be as efficient with our pennies. This year we have found many parents have waited until their child is three years old, which means we have a massive amount of children that will go to school next year. Next Autumn may not be so rosy but keeping a close eye on it. Edited July 3, 2013 by Fredbear Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lynned55 Posted July 3, 2013 Share Posted July 3, 2013 Mollypiper - can you not register for the 2 year old funding so that parents on low income could get their place funded? just because you are on a low income doesn't automatically qualify you for 2 year funding. In our area you have to be on income support- we have plenty of parents that cannot afford any extra sessions but dont qualify for 2 year funding. Since this was introduced we have had a total of three children qualify and two of those are this term! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DebbieW Posted July 4, 2013 Author Share Posted July 4, 2013 (edited) We start September with 46 children and will lose 35 in September 2014 to school. Last year was such a bumper year for 2 year olds.....so this year we will probably be ok but going forward looks bleak and have to start tightening the finances now. wish I was feeling happier this morning but thanks all for your comments....I'm sorry though that things are not looking exactly prosperous for anyone out there. I know there is a need for 'number crunching' but it makes me sad when little people are thought of this way. I was trying to explain my operational plan for ratio's to my committee and how what I love about the job is that you can never predict what a day will hold and that ratio's even as they stand in the EYFS at the moment is not enough at times....my 'heart' approach, rather than the 'head'...didn't exactly win them over but I had to say it. Have a good day everyone x Edited July 4, 2013 by DebbieW Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cait Posted July 4, 2013 Share Posted July 4, 2013 Struggling to fit everybody in! It's ludicrous next year in the mornings. Afternoons are a bit quieter so far! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sunnyday Posted July 4, 2013 Share Posted July 4, 2013 Struggling to fit everybody in! It's ludicrous next year in the mornings. Afternoons are a bit quieter so far! Excellent news Cait :1b We are full too - I just have a complete 'bee in my bonnet' re the funding situation (nothing new there then )...... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted July 4, 2013 Share Posted July 4, 2013 Same situation here we lose 20+ children to School's or other "school" nurseries that people seem to prefer to get their final year funding from instead of us!! But we are left with 20+ so it won't be as tight this year although the amount of full time nursery placements are very low. many are just doing 2 - 3 days etc SO this year i think i have decided to make the bold move and reduce full time childcare fees to just £120 per week for Todders and Pre-School. Was £170 and we havn't raised our prices in 3 years! This move will hopefully secure us lots of full time children and bring the money back in. The reason being that many working parents must find it difficult to pay for full time childcare and need to utilise family members or friends to look after their child for odd days, which is A) not has good educationally for the child, B) messes up the routine of the child and C) can be hard work for that family member or friend. Hopefully this will also encourage parents who thought they could not afford to work full time because of high childcare fee's now have the option again hopefully to make it worthwile to work. It should also encourage parents who already pay a lot of money at another setting to switch to us!! It is not the best move for the child and many will feel they dont want to move there child if they have been there a while but financially it would make a huge difference in some cases! Nasty but its dog eat dog right! Let me know your thoughts, i havn't rolled this out yet, but it has to happen soon. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zigzag Posted July 4, 2013 Share Posted July 4, 2013 We are so lucky at the moment, our community has had a massive baby boom!! We are increasing from 20 to 25 children every morning, increasing our afternoon sessions from 1 to 3 and taking on another member of staff. All our spaces are filled and we still have a waiting list. Whatever they are putting in the water here its working!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mollypiper Posted July 4, 2013 Share Posted July 4, 2013 Hi playgroup 1 - I went to a meeting about 2 year old funding on Monday which was eagerly anticipated by many parents. Unfortunately although they do not have any spare money I have not yet found one that matches the criteria - the same as in lynned55's case. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thumperrabbit Posted July 4, 2013 Share Posted July 4, 2013 Extremely quiet here for Sept 2013/14 - Sept 2012/13 was quiet too Children are out there, its just that a few schools have started to offer places for 2 year olds, just waiting for the other schools to follow suit and then that will be it for us Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SazzJ Posted July 4, 2013 Share Posted July 4, 2013 We seem to be just plodding along. Few more have signed up for September now. On around 12 I think which is better than previous years. 3 qualify for two year funding and two for 2 year funding. We're in a very affluent area though so don't expect many more. The criteria is those that qualify for free school meals, job seekers allowance, income support or earn under £16,100 but don't get working tax credits x Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sunnyday Posted July 4, 2013 Share Posted July 4, 2013 I'm feeling extremely guilty now so sorry - think I misunderstood original post..........I have children 'coming out of my ears' - not literally obviously :rolleyes: I was just taking an opportunity to bang on about funding Hope things 'pick up' for everyone :1b 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted July 6, 2013 Share Posted July 6, 2013 Same here It looks like doom and gloom again this year in more ways than one. got a few more children than last year but not brill so finances not good. Looking at whether I can meet the wages brill and all other outgoings wandering where to make cuts. Strugglng with lots of issues to .... Hugs to everyone in same situaton Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bluestar Posted July 6, 2013 Share Posted July 6, 2013 We seem to gain one then through no fault of our own lose one - hey ho! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted July 7, 2013 Share Posted July 7, 2013 we are looking better for the first time in a few yrs. We have just applied for 2yr old funding as we have several who would be eligible pencilled in If by some chance the LEA say no they will go elsewhere . As an aside we run the b/afterschool club the last 2yrs have been a bit bleak 4yrs ago we had to turn children away just shows that the financial climate has hit this sector hard. We closed our holiday club last yr our authority subsidise a lot of sports facilities so they can go there in the hols for the day for £10-£13 2 other school based clubs have also closed holiday clubs too . I don't know how it has affected the private day nurseries or their h/clubs though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted July 7, 2013 Share Posted July 7, 2013 I have same problem as cait to many to fit in, its a great position to be in but comes with its own set of issues irate parents who don't have a place for one and me feeling very guilty from April to end of May, fine by now as exhausted and looking forward to hols Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
finleysmaid Posted July 7, 2013 Share Posted July 7, 2013 I too am full this september and have 20 on the waiting list for next september....but we are in a high population area and we have a good location. I wonder why some of us are struggling and others less so...perhaps we need to analyse this as a group so that we can help each other and come up with a plan? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted July 7, 2013 Share Posted July 7, 2013 maybe i just need to up sticks and move where ever you are finleysmaid. Very low on numbers for september, only on 50% capacity so i have no alternative other than to cut staff hours, not sure what the knock on effect of that will be and if I will keep all my staff Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thumperrabbit Posted July 7, 2013 Share Posted July 7, 2013 I too am full this september and have 20 on the waiting list for next september....but we are in a high population area and we have a good location. I wonder why some of us are struggling and others less so...perhaps we need to analyse this as a group so that we can help each other and come up with a plan? How kind :1b Quick question - what age do your schools take from? We used to be exactly the same as you, I almost hated this time of year having to turn children away and the backlash that sometimes came with it, but then along came the introduction of school nurseries. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lashes2508 Posted July 8, 2013 Share Posted July 8, 2013 In Essex the council have sent out letters to all parents who qualify for 2 yr funding Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
finleysmaid Posted July 8, 2013 Share Posted July 8, 2013 How kind :1b Quick question - what age do your schools take from? We used to be exactly the same as you, I almost hated this time of year having to turn children away and the backlash that sometimes came with it, but then along came the introduction of school nurseries. sorry thumperrabbit ...having re-read this seems a bit :blink: :blink: it was meant with the best of intentions :rolleyes: You're absolutely right our schools round here dont take until the year they turn five...although i have 4 who also have a nursery attachment but they do not offer enough hours or facilities for my parents...they also offer places at odd times of year (because the children have to meet their age criteria...or because they aren't potty trained :angry: ....i know they cant but they do!) in terms of hours we offer sessional or 2 sessions plus lunch club (so 8.30 till 3)'''im just kind of wondering if it is just a location thing ? experienced practitioners like yourself will have explored all the options im sure, just thinking if there is anything else to analyse? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thumperrabbit Posted July 8, 2013 Share Posted July 8, 2013 sorry thumperrabbit ...having re-read this seems a bit :blink: :blink: it was meant with the best of intentions :rolleyes: You're absolutely right our schools round here dont take until the year they turn five...although i have 4 who also have a nursery attachment but they do not offer enough hours or facilities for my parents...they also offer places at odd times of year (because the children have to meet their age criteria...or because they aren't potty trained :angry: ....i know they cant but they do!) in terms of hours we offer sessional or 2 sessions plus lunch club (so 8.30 till 3)'''im just kind of wondering if it is just a location thing ? experienced practitioners like yourself will have explored all the options im sure, just thinking if there is anything else to analyse? No need to apologise, I have to say I wish someone would come and give us advice! our Early Years teams are virtually none existent now and if you do want advice you have to pay for it!!! It all started for us probably about 5 years ago but our story has gone like this; Introduction of morning only school nursery places for those who are 3 - not everyone got a place and so pre-schools were still busy following year introduction of 'wrap around care' for those 3 year olds - this lets in those who didn't get in following year introduction of lets take them the day they are 3 - parents now think whats' the point of a pre-school for perhaps a couple of months may as well wait for school this year lets now take them at 2 years old - this has only happened in about 4 of our local schools but as with all things, once one has done it they all follow suit so basically as a 2-4yr old setting we are pushed right out of the market, I know parents don't have to take up these school nursery places, but the pressure put on them by the schools if they are wavering is unbelievable Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
finleysmaid Posted July 8, 2013 Share Posted July 8, 2013 Where are the schools getting all the space from?? presumably they are having to provide classroom space for all these children...is this not an issue for them? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SazzJ Posted July 8, 2013 Share Posted July 8, 2013 Our problem lies heavily with not being full day care. We lost 3 children within a month due to other Childcare arrangements not working out. Another issue is we are in a heavily student populated area. The preschool near by is amongst all the family homes and were at the opposite end in amongst the students and the private schools Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
finleysmaid Posted July 8, 2013 Share Posted July 8, 2013 Our problem lies heavily with not being full day care. We lost 3 children within a month due to other Childcare arrangements not working out. Another issue is we are in a heavily student populated area. The preschool near by is amongst all the family homes and were at the opposite end in amongst the students and the private schools i pick up a lot from possible private ones...cos im SOOOOOO much cheaper! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted July 8, 2013 Share Posted July 8, 2013 Ours used to be like that but for the past 4 years we have kept children for the 2 yrs with virtually none going to maintained settings, we are good at what we do, we offer that little bit different, ie free flow, we are always outside, we go to the forest , we have had an outstanding since 2010, although not sure if we will retain it:)!! We plan for individual children, we have long lists, I don't advertise , it is word of mouth. I stand by what we believe very strongly and not afraid to tell parents we do what we do because of a b and c Also children attending maintained have not always got into the school, not all our schools have nurseries attached, I feed upto 9 schools . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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