The not-for-profit network, which was set up in December, will raise the capital costs towards the new-build Scandinavian-style timber facilities from investment partners. An employer, or several in one area, could buy places in a nursery at no net cost to themselves as they would be free to set fees individually. The capital costs would be repaid through a fixed profit margin of 15 per cent.
The chairman of the Employers Childcare Network, Jonathan Blain, said 180 employers had shown an interest in the scheme, including those representing local authority employees, and that the network had visited 120 firms and also had held talks with organisations such as the TUC. He said the network's scheme was designed to overcome the problems faced by privately-owned nurseries 'where you have the vagaries of numbers going up and down and having to compete with other nurseries'.
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