According to the HMRC and DWP, there has been a decline in the take-up of places over the last 12 months at the settings - Stepping Stones Nursery and First Steps Nursery, both in Benton in Newcastle and Waterview Park Nursery in Washington, all in the North East of England.
A spokesperson said, ‘There has been a decline in take-up of nursery places over the last 12 months in these locations.
‘The three nurseries are approximately 65 per cent full.
‘We have not decided to close these nurseries. We are conducting a consultation into the impact of closing them and will formally decide in June.’
The nurseries, operated by Interseve, a support service and construction company, on behalf of the Government departments, are open to HMRC and DWP staff as well as the local community. Together they provide over 180 childcare places.
Nursery World contacted Interserve, but they declined to comment.
Last September, the Department for Work and Pensions told Nursery World it had no plans to review its workplace nurseries.
Tracy Edwards from the Public and Commercial Services Union said that HRMC’s decision to hold a consultation into the future of its workplace nurseries follows a change to the department’s policy on providing childcare.
She went on to challenge the HMRC and DWP’s claim that the nurseries are 65 per cent full, saying that the settings have 75-80 per cent occupancy.
Ms Edwards added, ‘This is a cost-cutting measure by the Government departments. The sites where the nurseries are based are tucked away on the outskirts of the city and closing them would prove problematic for staff who use them.
‘The nurseries are purpose-built and can’t really be used for anything else. ‘
The consultation into the future of the nurseries, follows the closure of six HMRC nurseries last year.
In August 2012, Bright Horizons confirmed the closure of the eight nurseries it managed for HMRC. However, two of the settings in Wales and Scotland were given a temporary reprieve two months later when the HMRC offered Bright horizons the chance to continue to operate the settings until August 2015.