Please please please don't start harassing your childcare provider about this funding change today

The point is not everyone will read and take notice agreed but that is the case with any change or announcement in government policy.

But the majority will and take note so it's up to you as employers/ providers how you go about managing the impact of these announcements on your service and your employees.

But to do nothing except post a thread on an anonymous forum? you can be assured the majority of your callers are even less likely to read a thread on MN

I'm an accountant. At the start of lockdown, when the furlough and business support schemes were announced, I immediately sent out an email to all clients saying we didn't know any more than they did, all we knew was what had been announced on TV, and that we'd get back to them in the next few days when the detail was published.

That didn't stop literally dozens of clients phoning us, emailing us, texting us, for the rest of the day, right into the early hours, with typical queries such as "I know you don't know the detail but .........", then they'd get annoyed when we didn't reply immediately or replied with "I don't know yet".

So, no, blanket texting/emailing or website updates don't prevent people from asking impossible to answer questions, probably because lots of people don't read emails/texts properly and if they do, they think it doesn't apply to them.

So they should put something in the Website. That's usually where parents go first.

And or add something to the welcome message on the telephone

That would deflect the majority of enquiriesI. My point is there are easier ways to get your message across -

Nursery managers are reporting receiving queries from parents who are not already using the setting.

by the OP to write a blanket email / app update so parents don't need to bother nursery staff at all.
Surely its up to individuals parents to look at the details. Childcare providers won't know anymore than anyone else and they too are struggling to keep their heads above water.
Besides I am not convinced the changes will actually happen. Most are not due to come into effect until after the next election! And at the moment are workable because their just isn't the workforce anyway. Nurseries are closing and childminders leaving . I can't see that changing

Whilst I agree it is exciting news for parents, childcare providers have been crippled for years by lack of government investment into funded hours and noone has fought their corner. The result is that settings have closed in droves, particularly since covid, and it is going to take time and investment for numbers to be up enough to be able to take on all the extra funded children, if indeed settings want to actually offer funded places anymore.

Excited for more nurseries and childminders to have to close as they won’t be able to absorb the loss of these hours. The government’s contribution is less than the minimum wage.

This doesn't feel incredibly understanding - do you realise that childcare costs are crippling for most people. Please don't tell them off like they're toddlers for getting a bit excited.

This, this & this!

Messaging nursery managers and childminders this morning was unnecessary however unreasonable you think I am. You can't possibly think we would have had any information today bearing in mind it was only properly announced at 1pm.

Did you issue an email or correspondence to the parents- seems like other providers pre empted this and did just that instead of firing away on MN. Unlikely your parents will come to MN.

The total misunderstanding is so clear here. I feel sorry for the poster but her total ignorance helps no one

Did you call your employer the moment minimum wages changed to see what that meant for you? Same when NI changed. Did you call your energy supplier to check you would get your £64 on the same day now it's been extended?
The op raised the thread to help all providers who were in the main trying to care for children as even managers are doing that with the staffing shortages. Where is the empathy for the owners who are often working two jobs at the moment taking nothing out of nursery to keep it afloat?

I do think there are some valid reasons for the industry to be unhappy....
Funding levels are already underfunded by 50% of the amount the government's own advisors proposed as being what would give sustainability when it was first proposed, since then we have had inflation etc making it worse. We already have record numbers of closures across the sector.
To provide free care to 100% plus more children and make setting something stainable they would need to put in 300% more than they do now but that hasn't been mentioned instead it's back to increase the ratios. So more work for not enough money in an industry already losing staff to supermarkets where wages are higher work is easier and no worries about a child dying on your watch because you have too many to supervise and no educational or fun element it's all nappies feeding and keeping them alive.

Our nursery sent a message via the app yesterday when it started to appear in the media to rest assured they would send any updates as and when they have them but for now they know as much as we do! I'm sure one or two might have still asked, but a pro active message which took under a min to send I expect surely saved them a lot of work. Perhaps other settings could look to do this in the future?

The people who put together the budget down have a clue on what's involved or how it works they just come out with a sound bite the practical side is irrelevant as long as it's good PR

It's like the lockdown announcement messages coming in as he was speaking like we had some insider knowledge

It's like becoming government contractors forced to accept the pay offered under the conditions offered or no work....without the benefits of being an employee. Or getting minimum wage.

Wow!
I'd like to assume a childcare provider would have more empathy for struggling families wanting to know when they're going to get a little bit of extra help.
The amount of time spent moaning on this thread could have easily been used by the OP to write a blanket email / app update so parents don't need to bother nursery staff at all.

30 hours of free childcare for every child over the age of 9 months with working parents by September 2025, where eligibility will match the existing 3-4 year-old 30 hours offer.
This will be introduced in phases, with 15 hours of free childcare for working parents of 2-year-olds coming into effect in April 2024 and 15 hours of free childcare for working parents of 9 months – 3 years old in September 2024.
The funding paid to nurseries for the existing free hours offers will also be increased by £204 million from this September rising to £288 million next year.
Schools and local authorities will be funded to increase the supply of wraparound care, so that parents of school age children can drop their children off between 8am and 6pm – tackling the barriers to working caused by limited availability of wraparound care.
Childcare costs of parents moving into work or increasing their hours on Universal Credit paid upfront rather than in arrears, with maximum claim boosted to £951 for one child and £1,630 for two children – an increase of around 50%.

I think they are increasing the level of funding .

I work in the NHS. This reminds me of the Covid saga after Boris' announcements. Next day we had 100's of calls asking us how it's going to work, what happens next etc. we had absolutely no idea and only found out what was happening when everyone else was finding out.

Agree - had 1st parent ask me this morning at 8am for her 7month old baby - were in Scotland it doesn't even affect us!

I find it odd watching people jump on these kind of updates, like the furlough and lockdown announcement. Surely basic logic tells you that if it hasn't even been officially announced the no one will have the details, and that even after it's officially announced there will need to be an implementation period.

There's a couple of people on a BBC news story saying how unfair it is that it isn't starting straight away and asking why. Well that's bloody obvious isn't it, the technology systems that check for eligibility need to be updated, the childcare providers need to have time to ensure they have suitable staffing, new childcare providers will need to start businesses to cope with the demand, guidelines and legislations related to ratios will need to be updated and made public. None of this can happen overnight, it's months worth of work.