Want to get your career moving? How about working on a playbus? Patricia Slatcher gets on board to see what the job involves
They are big, bright and bundles of fun. Playbuses are one obvious answer to child provision problems, but there's not nearly enough of them. The National Playbus Association (NPA) has 250 voluntary sector mobile projects registered, but only 70 operate within the early years field.
This doesn't account for those run by local authorities or individual community groups. But demand still outstrips supply. 'Lack of funding holds back growth,' says the NPA's quality development project officer, Judy Greenan. 'But we are seeing increased interest now from Sure Start partnerships, so the potential for actual growth is there.'
If there isn't a playbus in your area, starting one may not be as hard as you think. The NPA provides an excellent start-up pack with everything you need to know, from costs to the legal ins and outs of applying for charitable status. A brand-new bus will set you back almost 130,000 and a second hand one 5,000 to 10,000, but the National Lottery and charities such as Children in Need have a good track record of helping projects like this.
If there already is such a project in your area, contact them or watch the local press for jobs. Shelli Williams, a part-time playworker with the Oxfordshire Playbus Association, recommends doing voluntary work. 'It can get you in the right place at the right time when a job does come up, as well as notching up experience,' she says. Shelli left a lucrative career in insurance to become a playbus worker. 'I'd always wanted to do it but had no background or qualifications in childcare. You don't need them to get started, but you will need NVQs if you want to move up or to run a project.'
Janet Wray has been with Sheffield's playbus for 27 years. 'I started as a mum who was willing to drive a bus,' she says. 'As the co-ordinator, I am now fully trained. I do think there are more jobs coming up in this sector, so try voluntary work and keep your eyes out for jobs.'
A varied route
For every playbus in the country, the routine will be different, but, says Shelli, that's one of the joys of the job. 'We are a charity, so we pick up a variety of work and funding from various sources,' she says. 'Projects can be dictated by whoever is providing the funds and we have an office-based co-ordinator who takes care of that. We work on run-down estates, or rural villages which have no play facilities or the transport to get to them. We support static provision or provide creche facilities for various functions.
And we do a lot of work with particular groups, such as travellers.
'We start each day with a 9.15am meeting in the office and then go and pick up the bus. We cover around 200 miles a week and run two or three, two-hour sessions a day with very diverse groups.'
Janet's week has changed considerably over the past year since her playbus became a registered education provider. 'We did a lot of work with the homeless and travellers but as funds started to dry up, we went down this route.
Funds are assured from the local education authority. We work from 8.30am-4pm and do ten sessions a week, split between two areas of Sheffield that have poor nursery facilities. Activities are structured around Early Learning Goals and we are Ofsted-inspected - so there's a lot more paperwork now too!'
Pay for playbus workers depends on the project's funding status. You can expect between 11,000 and 15,000, with part-timers earning 4 to 6 an hour. A co-ordinator could earn up to 19,000, but this can also vary across the country. There are no creature comforts either. 'You will not always be dry and warm in the winter,' Shelli points out. 'We have a generator to heat the bus when it's stationary, but you get cold driving between sites.' Janet adds, 'It can be physically demanding and we often end up forgoing breaks. It takes time to set up and then pack up equipment.'
You also need to be able to adapt quickly to different types of groups and environments. 'You cannot be judgmental in any way,' says Shelli. 'Children are from all sorts of communities and backgrounds, and you have to take them for what they are.'
Happy passengers
Funding restrictions are frustrating, especially when obvious needs can't be met. Shelli says, 'We would like to provide a sensory mobile unit for special needs children, for example, but haven't the funding.' And while being a registered education provider may offer better job security, Janet admits it does detract from the variety of work. 'We are not free anymore to offer pure playwork and go where we please,' she says. But both women agree this is far outweighed by job satisfaction and the look on children's faces when the playbus arrives.
