A large voluntary childcare group is to close after the local authority decided to stop funding it because it does not offer 'value for money'.
Last month Edinburgh City Council said it would provide 43,000 to bail out Craigmillar Childcare Services (CCS) on the condition that a suitable business plan was drawn up with two independent consultants chosen by the council.
A council report last week said, 'CCS has indicated that it has operated with an average occupancy of 73 children in the current year. With public funding of 352,428, this indicates an average of 4,827 per child over and above fees charged to parents, which averaged at 2,082 per year. The organisation does not appear to be providing value for money.'
Councillor Andrew Burns said, 'It is important that we get best value for public funds, and following an independent consultants' assessment of CCS it is recommended in the report that an alternative childcare provider is found.
'In the meantime, to ensure a smooth transition for parents and children, it recommends that we continue to fund CCS for a further three months.' The council will advertise for a new provider.
CCS has one nursery and four out-of-school clubs that offer over 100 childcare places and employ 28 staff.
CCS chairman Paul Nolan told Nursery World in January that the organisation had been at loggerheads with the council for three years. That month Mr Nolan said, 'We run this on a shoestring. We are at the mercy of the tax credit system, which has been a disaster for communities like ours.'
Ian Maxwell, deputy director of One Parent Families Scotland, which runs childcare services in Edinburgh, said, 'The problems in Craigmillar may have been exacerbated by local politics, but the issues of debt control, cash flow and making services affordable are widespread in childcare.'
