The proposed National Childcare Service, is necessary to address a 45 percent shortfall in capacity that will emerge when free nursery care doubles in 2020, claims lobby group Common Weal.
Its report, entitled, An Equal Start: A plan for equality in early learning and care in Scotland, predicts the SNP’s pledge will require an extra 45,000 childcare places, 1,125 new centres and 10,970 new staff - an increase of 80 per cent.
According to the report, the expansion - which would cost at least an estimated £800m before staff training and wages - could be funded from an expected five per cent rise in the Scottish Government’s capital budget, or through borrowing.
The organisation, which describes current local authority arrangements as ‘fragmented, haphazard and unequal’, called for the centres to run a full-time, five-day public service to a ‘uniformly excellent standard’.
The report says, ‘With a vast range of differences in the number of increased places needed across local authorities, and with an uneven level of supply/demand data, local authorities are not equipped to manage the doubling of free hours on their own. A linked-up national plan is needed.’
It also controversially suggests that private nurseries – which provide some of the funded care through local authority ‘partnerships’ – will be unable to cope with the increased demand and could be bought out to house the state-run centres
The report says, ‘Partnership childcare centres would be offered buyouts, which would be attractive to staff and managers as it would create greater job security and improved wages.
‘While small and micro-businesses are positive for economic development in Scotland and many private providers deliver childcare to a high standard, we do not believe they are the most appropriate vehicle for delivering uniformly excellent early years education.’
The National Day Nurseries Association (NDNA) warned that nationalisation could kill choice and quality, and suggested it would be better to ‘unlock’ unused capacity by boosting funding in the private and third sectors.
The NDNA's chief executive Purnima Tanuku said, ‘While we would welcome the much-needed investment in childcare suggested by Common Weal in its report, we don’t believe this should be spent in creating a national childcare service.’
Private and third sector nurseries are offering important services, being more likely to offer flexibility such as with Saturday sessions, claimed Ms Tanuku.
He added that almost half of such settings work in partnerships with local schools to provide ‘wraparound care’ and support children’s drop off and pick up arrangements.
Ms Tanuku disputes Common Weal’s criticism of the sector, citing ratings of 80 per cent ‘good’ and 7 per cent ‘excellent’ private settings.
She added, ‘A healthy early years sector is made up of a mix of high quality providers, giving the best choice for parents and their children.
‘Traditionally, parents have chosen their preferred form of childcare, from private nurseries to childminders and local authority-run centres, based on their needs.
‘There is further capacity within private and third sector nurseries in Scotland, which currently have a 76 per cent occupancy. These places could be unlocked if local authority funding was sufficient to cover the delivery costs.
‘Rather than recreating the childcare infrastructure, they should use the existing infrastructure of the private and third sector nurseries.’
With childcare in Scotland the second most expensive in Europe, the SNP has promised to double free hours to 30 a week, or 1,140 a year, to help parents into work.
The care would be available to all three to four-year-olds and 'vulnerable’ two year olds by 2020.