Council plans may force settings to get vehicle licences

Practitioners would also be required to become licensed taxi drivers.

Last June, Barrow-in-Furness Borough Council in Cumbria wrote to all private nurseries in the area to notify them of the rules concerning company vehicles with eight or fewer seats, which nurseries use to take children out on trips and for pick-ups and drop-offs.

According to the council's interpretation of Department for Transport (DfT) guidance, private nurseries that use vehicles with up to eight passenger seats to transport children must obtain private hire licences, as they are providing a 'minicab service' that they are gaining from financially.

This is despite the two affected nurseries, Happy Tots Day Nursery and Cheeky Monkeys Childcare, not charging an additional fee to parents for children to be transported in their vehicles.

Businesses, including childcare providers, that operate vehicles with more than eight passenger seats are required to obtain a licence from the Vehicle and Operator Services Agency.

While the guidance from the DfT states that car journeys taken by most childminders would not fall within the licensing regime, there is no specific mention of nurseries. Barrow-in-Furness Borough Council also wants those driving licensed private hire vehicles, including nursery practitioners, to be registered taxi drivers to guarantee the safety of those being transported.

To become a licensed taxi or private hire driver in Barrow, a DBS check is required, along with successfully passing a medical assessment and taxi-driving test.

While the DfT confirmed to Nursery World that local authorities are free to interpret its guidance as they wish, Barrow-in-Furness Borough Council is thought to be the only local authority placing such demands on private nurseries.

The two nurseries in Barrow-in-Furness that would be affected by the council's plans are fighting the move, which they say would cost them thousands of pounds a year. Both Happy Tots and Cheeky Monkeys will present their case to the council's licensing regulatory committee in June, when a final decision will be made about whether nurseries require licences.

Nursery World contacted Barrow-in-Furness Borough Council for a comment, but a council spokesperson said it would not be able to respond until after the meeting.

Happy Tots

Happy Tots Day Nursery has estimated it would cost in excess of £4,000 in set-up fees to operate its four vehicles if the council goes ahead with its plans, along with additional renewal costs every year. The 137-place setting uses its vehicles to transport children attending its out-of-school and holiday clubs.

Happy Tots business manager Matthew Pilkington said, 'We worked out it will cost us just over £4,000 for initial set-up; this includes the licences for our nine members of staff who drive the vehicles. On top of this, private hire vehicles are required to have an MOT every four months if they are over five years old.

'The DfT guidance states that licensing may not apply if transportation is only a minor part of the service. We only use our vehicles for about an hour a day. On average, each bus does 950 miles per year.'

Mr Pilkington said the nursery has started the process of getting private hire driver licences for staff after being threatened with fines or legal action by the council if it did not comply with the rules. He added, 'The council has also mentioned to us that we might need planning permission to keep the vehicles on-site.'

Cheeky Monkeys

Cheeky Monkeys Childcare has launched a fundraising drive to raise the £1,300 it would need to purchase a private hire vehicle licence for the year. The nursery, which says it is unable to cover the extra cost itself, has stopped using its vehicle until a decision is made by the council.

Owner Kerry Griffin said, 'Not being able to use the vehicle has meant that we are restricted to organising trips to places where the children can walk to. We are also unable to take the two children we care for with special educational needs to the local children's centre for sensory play.

'The local authority must think we are making a profit from running this service, but we're not. The cost of running the vehicle, which we also use to transport children to our breakfast and after-school clubs, is covered by parents' childcare fees. There is no way we could charge parents more money.'

Claire Schofield, director of membership, policy and communications at the National Day Nurseries Association (NDNA), said, 'The Government lays down guidelines that local authorities are free to interpret. It seems that Barrow-in-Furness Borough Council is viewing childcarers as private hire vehicle operators because they charge a fee, albeit indirectly, for carrying children in vehicles. Because of this, they are asking them to make sure their drivers have minicab licences.

'This issue does crop up from time to time in different local authority areas. In this case, we are talking to local NDNA member nursery owners and managers to see what can be done collectively, to make representations to the council about it. Nurseries are facing the extra cost and time involved in seeking such licences as well as increases in insurance premiums. We will look to support our members in asking the council for a rethink.'

Liz Bayram, chief executive of PACEY, said, 'The issue of childminders having to hold private hire licences for vehicles carrying children in their care is one that has been ongoing for many years. Why this is now being applied to nurseries is unclear. PACEY has published advice on this time-consuming and expensive policy, which can seemingly be enforced or ignored at the whim of local authorities. We also got the Department for Transport to change its guidance, making it clear that childminders did not require a licence. We will look to do the same for nurseries.'

• DfT guidance, http://bit.ly/1bTiIUC.