Nursery World - EYSFF will force us to shut, say settings

One in ten early years settings surveyed by the Pre-School Learning Alliance say they will have to close if the introduction of the Early Years Single Funding Formula results in a loss in funding.

The Alliance polled 700 member settings to gauge attitudes to the EYSFF, which aims to create equitable funding for the free nursery education entitlement for threeand four-year-olds. Only 14 per cent of respondents said they predict an increase, while 32 per cent expect a reduction.

Nearly half of respondents said that they will have no choice but to increase fees for parents.

The findings also raise doubts about how nurseries will cope when the free entitlement is extended from 12.5 hours to 15 hours in September.

Speaking at the Alliance's annual conference and AGM last week, Judith Thompson, chair of the board of trustees, told delegates that the method of gathering data for the EYSFF was essentially flawed.

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