Two linked studies, carried out by researchers at the National Centre for Social Research and the University of Oxford, looked at the views and experiences of parents using Neighbourhood Nurseries and at the implementation of the programme from the point of view of providers.
Alice Bell, co-author of the report into parents' experiences, said, 'Most of the families who have benefited either weren't using childcare before, or were relying on informal care such as grandparents. The initiative has made a real difference to these families' lives.'
She added that more than half the parents surveyed continued to use other forms of childcare, both informal and formal, alongside the Neighbourhood Nursery.
The study into the implementation of the scheme examined a sample of 31 nurseries from the 112 open at the beginning of 2003 across 57 EYDCPs in England. Interviews took place with nursery managers or owners and others who had played a significant role in setting up the nursery. Key questions included the nurseries' objectives, whether they were successful in attracting families from the most disadvantaged areas and factors that led to successful development at this stage.
Half of the nurseries surveyed were private sector, representing the profile of NNI nurseries open by early 2003, six were maintained or jointly-run, and ten were in the voluntary sector.
The study found that three-quarters of the children using Neighbourhood Nurseries were living in the 20 per cent most disadvantaged wards. More than a quarter of the children had places subsidised directly by NNI funding, 20 per cent were subsidised by the nursery, 10 per cent by local authorities, 7 per cent by Sure Start, 5 per cent by FE childcare funding and 4 per cent by the Learning and Skills Council.
Early Stages of the Neighbourhood Nurseries Initiative: Opening the Nurseries and Early Stages of the Neighbourhood Nurseries Initiative: Parents' Experiences can be downloaded from the website www.surestart.gov.uk/ensuring quality/research.