The new children's centres are Faringdon, Berinsfield, Witney, South Didcot, Britannia Road, North Banbury and East Street, making a total of 11 centres across the county.
Clare Abolins, the children's centre programme manager in south Oxfordshire, said, 'These seven centres were formerly family centres and mark the beginning of Phase Two over 2006 to 2008, which should see 25 children's centres opening. We only opened four over 2004 to 2006, so it is a really busy time for us.'
Lesley Bourne, head of East Street Children's Centre in Banbury, described the changes over the year as 'monumental'.
'As a family centre we had a Foundation Stage class, a playgroup, daycare and a creche, so they were all vying for the same children,' she said. 'Now we've managed to meld together these four services into East Street Early Years, providing all-round sessional care. Now it's truly integrated care and education.'
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