A consultation by the council, which will take place in May and June, is to look at three possible options for the nursery schools. They are: Atherstone Early Years Centre, Bedworth Heath Nursery School and Children's Centre, Kenilworth Children's Centre and Nursery School, Stockingford Early Years Centre, Warwick Children's Centre and Nursery School, and Whitnash Nursery School.
The options for the nursery schools are: to become a nursery class attached to a primary school; to bring in private providers to take over daycare provision; or to develop nursery schools as centres of excellence, which means that a school would remain a stand-alone nursery school but would develop advisory services and share knowledge and expertise with other providers.
Extra funding for the third option would be generated through ending the local EYFS Partnership Scheme, which provides £60,000 per year to fund qualified teacher support for around 50 PVI settings.
Warwickshire County Council, which was approved in February as a second-wave pilot local authority for the Early Years Single Funding Formula, has denied that the review is aimed at cutting costs.
However, the council's consultation document, which says that the review is due to a 'changing national agenda' that promotes early years provision rather than nursery education, repeatedly highlights the financial impact of the EYSFF and the statutory requirement on local authorities to provide a flexible 15 hours' free entitlement by September 2010.
The consultation document notes the flexibility of the PVI sector and says that that the cost of funding a place in a nursery school is £5.39 per hour, compared with £3.45 for the PVI sector and £3.78 for a child in a nursery class.
Norma Smeaton, head of early years and childcare at Warwickshire County Council, said, 'The review has not come about because of the EYSFF or the extension to the free entitlement, but obviously these are additional factors that have to be taken into account. We will not be closing any provision from the area; we are just looking at different governing arrangements.'
Mandy Brougham, chair of governors at Kenilworth Nursery School, said, 'Kenilworth is overscubscribed and is not financially unsustainable. We were ready for the end of place funding and we have a sustainability plan in place.
'My opinion is that this is due to the EYSFF, as Warwickshire is a pilot and needs to find these savings straight away. I believe that the council is just looking to save money.'
Supporters of Kenilworth Nursery School have organised a demonstration on Saturday 17 April, which will be attended by councillors from all political parties. They have also launched a Facebook page and an online petition.
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