Two recent surveys have great relevance to the nursery business. The first is on 'Women in the Workforce' and the other concerns recent disasters in the way child protection is exercised.
Despite all our efforts to encourage more men into childcare, the workforce is almost exclusively female. It is hardly surprising that issues around maternity leave and flexi-hours figure quite highly in our HR department. However, these new rules do cause problems, as well as solve them.
One of the cornerstones of good childcare is 'consistency'. Seeking to offer flexi-time to nursery staff involves accepting that children looked after by such staff are not really getting the best childcare possible.
At the Childcare Corporation we do try to oblige employees as much as possible, and will always permit flexi-working where childcare itself is not in question. But we have to balance employee expectations with issues around quality childcare and often the choice is very difficult.
The second survey concerned social services, especially after the Baby P case. I have often thought that those in the childcare area of social services these days do not seem to have the same attitude to the children in their care as we have. Most nursery staff are diligent and forthright when it comes to notifying the authorities of our fears for children in our care. We accept that if we get it wrong we will certainly lose the child from nursery and might find ourselves at the wrong end of litigation. However, we never shy away from possible consequences if we have even the smallest doubt that a child may be at risk.
By contrast, local authority social services today seem never to learn from their mistakes. Endless reports identify a host of weaknesses but they are repeated time and time again. A classic example is the way many mothers with children on the protection register seem able to hide the presence of abusive and brutal partners. One reason they can hide these men away from prosecution is that, in order to be politically correct, social services arrange their appointments to visit the home on a 'what is convenient to you' basis. Naturally, they find nothing untoward. How about turning up at 7am unexpectedly, despite the lack of social etiquette? It is harrowing to think that such a simply idea could possibly have allowed Baby P to blossom into adulthood.
Alan Bentley is chairman of the Childcare Corporation
