Council launches consultation to transform children's centres into family hubs

Suffolk County Council has launched a consultation on a review of children's centres and how they are delivered in the area.

An analysis of all current children's centre sites has taken place and the council is now looking to focus on the need for nursery provision in the area, the level of local deprivation, existing outreach provision, the costs of running children's centres, usage of the buildings by partners and the attendance of vulnerable families in the areas where children's centre buildings have previously closed.

A proposal would see the development of 16 full-time family hubs, catering for 0 to 19-year-olds, including The Carousel in Bury St Edmunds, The Lark Children's Centre in Mildenhall and Acorns in Stowmarket.

The council are also proposing to develop 11 part-time family hubs which would include Bury St Edmunds Library, The Brandon Centre, Bluebells in Stanton and Sunshine in Stowmarket.

They are also proposing to close two children's centres - Chatterbox in North Ipswich due to the size of the site and it having no disabled access and Caterpillar in Woodbridge due to the high costs of the building and its lack of parking.

Councillor Mary Evans, cabinet member for children's services, education and skills, said: "There are going to be no cuts as such and no job losses. We want to do more outreach work for hard to reach families - that don't always come into the centres. We are proposing to turn the children's centres into family hubs.

"If we make library places available we hope these families can get support for vulnerable two-year-olds. There will be more availability to provide nursery places for vulnerable two-year-olds."

At the moment 72 per cent of two-year-olds take up a funded place in nursery with 94 per cent of three and four-year-olds taking up a funded place.

Seven of the proposed repurposed sites for nurseries would each offer 10 to 20 places, meaning 70 to 140 nursery places would be created through proposals.

In the proposal the council says it wants 'to make sure families that need help can access it easily where they live.' By achieving this they wish to bring the services to the users on a mobile basis, in locations that are needed.

This would include, churches, libraries, village halls, part-time hubs, existing parent and toddler groups, leisure centres, outdoor areas, schools and colleges and community centres.

The new family hubs will offer additional services from current children's centres including, mental health support, parenting skills, healthy lifestyles, reducing parental conflict, communication and language support, and Work Well Suffolk run by Suffolk Mind.

Hardwick Primary School is currently home to a children's centre and the council is proposing to repurpose this to provide additional nursery places.

Services for under five-year-olds will remain in the area from outreach sites.

The Carousel in Bury St Edmunds will become a fill-time family hub - its aim will be to offer further opportunities for partners to deliver services for 0 to 19 year-olds within the current children centre space.

The Carousel currently caters for under five-year-olds.

The children centre is also part of the planning for the Newbury Community Centre which the council is hoping will enhance a family service approach.

The community centre is expected to be open by late 2021.

Councillor Jack Abbott, Labour spokesperson for children’s services and education at Suffolk County Council, said: “As we feared, the Conservative’s final proposals are every bit as damaging as was first revealed last spring.

“No amount of Tory spin or rebranding changes the facts before us. This isn't an expansion, but a ruthless withdrawal of absolutely vital early years provision. Eleven children’s centres will close and nearly a dozen more will have their opening hours reduced - this means that more than half of Suffolk’s children’s centres will face some sort of cut.

“Our children should never be subject to an either-or choice and the council must start recognising the damage they are doing by not investing properly in early years.

“These cuts represent one of the biggest attacks on public services our county has ever seen. I will be doing everything I can to oppose these plans which will do so much damage to children and families.”

A consultation will go live tomorrow at 9am and will run for the next seven weeks until 5pm on Sunday, March 1.

The consultation questionnaire can be found here www.suffolk.gov.uk/ccconsultation or you can request a hard copy by calling 0345 603 1842.

On Thursday, January 30 there will be a public drop-in event being held between 10am and 12pm at The Apex, studio 2 in Bury St Edmunds.