Opinion divided on flexible working

Gill Smith, who runs the Gooseberry Bush Day Nursery in Camborne,Cornwall, said it 'would help immensely if people were not on flexibleworking' and that when the nursery fills up and has 80 childrenattending part time it is 'something of a nightmare'.

She explained, 'It is the coming and going and working out which bit ofcare is funded and which isn't that is a growing problem.'

However, the Family and Parenting Institute (FPI) said that if BusinessSecretary of State Lord Mandelson postpones next April's plannedextension of the right to request flexible working to parents of allchildren up to 16, it would be 'a major setback for many families'.

The Government may also ditch plans to extend paid maternity leave nextyear from 39 to 52 weeks to help small businesses during therecession.

Addressing a reception organised by the FPI to mark Parents' Week,Trevor Phillips, chair of the Equality and Human Rights Commission,said, 'Those who want to put flexible working on hold to protectbusinesses are wrong - flexible working is not an unnecessary cost, itis an opportunity. Businesses need maximum flexibility in difficulttimes. It isn't about being nice, it is essential.'

Purnima Tanuku, chief executive of the National Day NurseriesAssociation, said it believes flexible working can 'help families findthe right balance between home and work life'.

But she acknowledged that it 'presented particular issues for daynurseries in terms of changing patterns of childcare use and requestsfrom their own staff teams for flexible working hours'.

She added, 'Both of these can be an added pressure on margins asnurseries start providing new childcare sessions and have to developinnovative working patterns to retain staff.'

Steve Alexander, chief executive of the Pre-school Learning Alliance,said that while families need increased flexibility at work and inchildcare choices, providers see them as 'a further cost pressure asrevenue becomes further stretched by accommodating parental choice'.

He added, 'Lord Mandelson's proposals neither serve parents nor tacklethe underlying challenges providers face in balancing costs againstincome.'

Sarah Jackson, chief executive of Working Families, said, 'Flexibleworking is one of the most effective tools which a business can use toretain staff, to avoid the costs, complexity and risk of redundancies,and to focus on maintaining motivation, commitment and performance.'