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An audit of Childcare Services in the Western Isles has found that 91% of parents and carers are satisfied with childcare services.
19% of respondents said they had unmet childcare needs with holiday clubs, after school clubs, childcare near home or work, childcare in the home, activities for the 12+ age group and childcare for the under 3’s the services most required.
As part of the Western Isles Childcare Partnership’s commitment to provide childcare services to meet the developmental needs of children and the economic needs of parents and communities an extensive local audit was undertaken over the last 5 months. A comprehensive advertising campaign took place and questionnaires were distributed to parents, providers, schools, service users and children throughout the Western Isles. The last audit of this size was completed in 1999.
37.9% of households with children/young people responded which, compared to similar audits in 9 other local authority areas, was the highest return rate.
Donalda Campbell, Chair of the Childcare Partnership, said “we would like to thank all parents/carers, children, schools and pre-school providers who took the time to share their experiences, complete and return the questionnaires. This information will help shape our future planning to provide good quality childcare services to meet the needs of parents and children within the Western Isles.”
A brief summary of some of the main findings follows. The full report is available from the Childcare Partnership Office.
- Of those who had unmet need, the greatest need was for holiday clubs, after school clubs, childcare near home or work, childcare in the home, activities for the 12+ age group and childcare for the under 3’s.
- The majority of parents accessed childcare service to allow them to work on a full time or part time basis.
- More than three times the number of respondents would prefer childcare to be located near their place of work rather than near their home.
- Although only 4.5% of respondents claimed that transport was an issue it was apparent from the comments received that for those few affected it is a profound problem that impacts on employment options.
- Comparison with the 1995 audit suggests that whereas the preference for Gaelic has stayed largely the same, there has been a distinct increase in the number of respondents who expressed a preference for both languages.
- Few parents/carers were unaware of the Working Tax credit and just under half were receiving payments.
- The Children’s view -When asked to identify the activities they would like to take part in during the school holidays the children identified a vast range of leisure and learning pursuits. A large number wanted outdoor activities.
- Service users were also asked which other services they would use if they were available. The findings reflected those described elsewhere in the report with preferences expressed for holiday clubs, out of school clubs and family centres.
- There was a large discrepancy in the salaries of playleaders
- There were a large number of misconceptions in relation to training, communication and screening issues. All are specifically addressed in the penultimate section of the report.
Nigel Scott
Communications Officer
Comhairle nan Eilean Siar
Tel: 01851 709389 (Work)
Tel: 07884 236103 (Mobile)
email: nscott@cne-siar.gov.uk |
