Nursery World - Sheffield grant funding cut raises fear settings will close

Twenty early years settings in Sheffield, the majority in the most deprived areas of the city, have had 3.6m in grant funding stopped by the city council.

Fourteen are community and voluntary nurseries, but two private nurseries, three on school sites and one NHS nursery are also affected.

The council claims that a cut of £6.8m to the Early Intervention Grant forced it to take the decision to end funding at the end of March.

Parents and supporters have waged a long campaign opposing the cuts with more than 10,000 people signing a petition and holding a number of protests.

The council insists that it will support settings with business plans so that they can stay open.

No nurseries have closed yet but campaigners fear that some will close or be taken over by private providers.

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