What was a playgroup and do they still exist?

[NameChange9490]

I know that when I was 2 I went to playgroup 3 mornings a week, for the year before I went to nursery school. As a mum now I’ve never heard of a playgroup. Does anyone know what they were and why they don’t appear to exist any more?

I would say they still exist. Called preschool, running say 9-12, or 12-3pm in church halls etc, parents leave their children.

Or there’s toddler group for £2 that parents stay for which is a different thing.

It is 0-5
All EYFS childcare providers have to adhere to the statutory framework.
The EYFS framework:

• sets the standards that all early years providers must meet to ensure that children learn and develop well
• ensures children are kept healthy and safe
• ensures children have the knowledge and skills they need to start school

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/early-years-foundation-stage-framework--2

This thread goes to show how confusing Early Years provision is, when the names are so interchangeable.

The reason very few traditional playgroups exist anymore has a lot to do with the fact that a lot higher % of women are out at work and so are neither available to run them, but also to use them - working parents generally needing a full day rather than 2 or 2.5 hours. But mostly, as has been said, so many closed when they started tightening up the regulations - to do with DBS and Safeguarding training etc, so a volunteer from the Church couldn't just help out when they were short for a bit, and to do with regulations on toilets, kitchens, etc, and other people being on the premises when the dc were etc etc , plus all the other hoops OFSTED started setting. So many playgroups which were mainly run on a volunteer basis by Churches, just found it too much, so closed.
They do still exist but are rare now.

I'm not sure that they do exist at all...as a playgroup run with unqualified staff without all the necessary checks, wouldn't be allowed now... which is why there are groups where parents/carers stay, but otherwise they are registered early years providers. Surely?

Playgroups ran before Ofsted existed. After Ofsted some became nurseries and some continued to run as playgroups with Ofsted checks. But financially they are rarely viable these days.
Although I see from this thread some of what used to be called parent and toddler groups are now called playgroups. They used to be as distinct as these days nurseries and parent and toddler groups are distinct.

This thread goes to show how confusing Early Years provision is, when the names are so interchangeable.

There are also regional variations and different names used at different time periods.

They are all registered if children are left for more than 2 hours per session. They tend to be called pre-schools now or Jack and Jills, Toybox, Tiny Tots (a lot of Tiny Tots) etc

Cool, thanks. The point of my post was that childcare now follows this guidance, and that's probably what sets it apart from the playgroups of old.

Although that guidance was not written at the time, there was good practice guidelines that were similar that some playgroups did follow. There was not the record keeping that now happens though.

Run by volunteers for a few hours a day, a few days a week in a hall.

My mum was a 'play leader' at the one o went to in the 70s. She was unpaid but got some training paid for by the committee.

They exist where I live.
One morning a week, a paid staff member, a rota of parents to assist each week, all of whom are dbs checked, and a committee of parents running it. Very cheap rates (£4 for 3 hour session), but not feasible childcare unless you work from home AND are prepared to take holiday time every few weeks to help out.

Relies completely on all parents mucking in to help out and social pressure to make sure people dont take the piss.Its absolutely NOT proper childcare for any parent with a 'normal' job.

I went to playschool when i was 2 or 3. I don't remember much about it except that it was a very small hut next to the first school that I went to afterwards. There were no such things as preschools then.

Thanks for all of your responses! To clarify, I don’t mean a toddler group that you take your children to and stay at. I know they still exist, they’re everywhere. This was a form of childcare, apparently it lasted 3 hours and was on every morning in a church hall. My mum left me there and paid a couple of quid per morning.

I did work experience in a playgroup in 1993.

It was for children from age 2 until the September they were 3 and could start at the school nursery class. They had to be toilet trained but children generally were by 2 at that time.

Staff were paid.

It was a 2.5 hour session. It started with table games and a simple craft activity alongside free play in the home corner and similar.

Biscuit and squash time.

Little chairs put out in a circle for songs and story time.

Large toys out like dolls prams and ride on cars.

Home.

Sounds similar to the play school.I attended in the 70,s
I'm sure some probably do still exist but pp, have said back in the day they were run by volunteers ,now they will.have to offer some early year education and be inspected Ofsted etc.
The one I used to go to was started up over 50years ago and run from the church hall by volunteers and parents paid a small fee
Its still going but its a proper pre school.now with trained staff.

I was left there but it was called playgroup. This is in the late 80s. I went there the academic year I was 2 turning 3. Then the year I was 3 turning 4 I moved on to preschool/nursery which was part of the primary school I eventually went to. Playgroup was in a church hall and according to my mum was very cheap, just a small donation to cover the cost of snack. She dropped me off and collected me at the end.

Thanks, I see why they no longer exist. It’s a shame really! It would be lovely to pay a fiver for a few hours of childcare a day!

The one I described children were left.

It’s a shame they no longer exist. It was such a nice gentle introduction for children to the world of education and developing independence.

I think parents paid £2.50 a session

I went to kindergarten in the '70s. It sounds similar to what you're describing. I went for a few hours each morning, around the age of three or four (I started primary school at four). It was in a local community centre. There were staff, so I'm guessing my parents had to pay. I must ask my Dad if he remembers.

My memories are hazy, but I think the mothers dropped off their kids, because there were big families back then (no contraception in Ireland), so most of the mothers would have had babies and younger children (toddlers) to tend to. I'd say we were collected around 12 or 12.30.

There were lots of toys and a sandpit and we sang songs. I think the idea of it was to prepare the DC for big school and to give the mothers a break.

It wasn't childcare as we know it today, because very few mothers worked back then in Ireland.

I was left at the play school I went to. This would have been in 1982.

My children attended a playgroup in SW London which is still running. It runs 9-12 and takes children from 2.5 who are potty trained. It is ofsted regulated so follows the eyfs and it is run by a mix of volunteers and paid staff. It is a charity so not run for profit. I think it cost £25 for the three hours so cheaper than other local childcare options.

How is allowed.to discriminate against disabled children and those with development delays ?

There was one locally 10 + years ago when the dc were small. Basically an informal nursery run by a rota of mums 2 mornings a week, I think supervised by a (or more?) playworker/nursery nurse. If you weren't on rota, you could leave your child. I'm not sure it runs anymore, due to most families needing 2 incomes I believe.

We also lost our Surestart centre 7 or 8 years ago, as the area was considered to be too affluent. There seems to be very little for young families locally now, and with the degradation on our bus services, the social impact of rural isolation are really being felt.

I don't run the playgroup so I'm not the right person to ask.
There was one little boy who had some medical needs and was still in nappies so they did make some exceptions.