A new election battleground has opened up as Labour pledges to save popular Sure Start children’s centres from further closures and double the number of childcare places they provide to more than 118,000.
Shadow education secretary Tristram Hunt, who had previously questioned the wisdom of reopening centres, will say on Sunday that a Labour government would restore a statutory obligation on those centres still running to provide access to childcare, while also granting them powers to open their doors to charities and local providers to use their facilities.
The move would reverse a decision in 2010 by the coalition government, when Sure Start centres were freed from a previous requirement to provide childcare. Labour claims that since then hundreds of centres have closed as local authorities faced funding cuts and many more have reduced services.
Labour’s initiative was welcomed by the children’s charity 4Children, which said it would ensure that unused premises in many remaining 3,000 Sure Start centres could be occupied by providers wanting to meet rising demand.
Anne Longfield, the charity’s chief executive, said: “Childcare is one of the biggest financial and logistical challenges for many parents. We know that one in five parents paying for childcare are considering giving up their job or reducing their hours as a result of the financial strain. With over 3,000 children’s centres across the country, and a third telling us they have space to provide more childcare, there is a huge untapped resource that has the potential to both support parents with the challenges of childcare and give children the best start in life.”
But as Labour insisted the move would not cost extra money, because it would rely on charities and other providers using existing premises and employing their own staff, the Tories said the promise of so many more places amounted to an uncosted Labour spending pledge amounting to £1bn.
Hunt insisted the spending claim from the Tories was untrue and that the plan would give providers, including charities, facilities they desperately needed, benefiting local communities.
“It is a scandal that these brilliant community assets are being mothballed or even closed at a time when parents are crying out for decent childcare in their communities,” he said. “We will not succeed as a country unless we ensure every child has a decent start in life.”
At present many Sure Start centres that used to provide childcare still occupy the building where that care was provided. With many providers lacking sufficient space of their own, Hunt believes the policy meets demand at zero cost.
He said: “We’re going to put the lights back on, get the kids back in and restore the founding purpose of Sure Start. Our plan will place local authorities under a legal obligation to provide access to childcare at these centres – along with the power to do it by opening up the doors to local providers desperate for good premises like these.”
A Conservative spokesman said that to meet its pledge Labour would end up spending money. He said: “Once again, Labour are shaking the magic money tree to pay for unfunded spending commitments. That’s exactly how Labour got us into a mess in the first place. Hard-working people will pay the price for Ed Miliband’s chaotic ill-discipline through higher taxes, more borrowing and more debt.”
Last year, Hunt suggested that Labour would not reopen around 500 Sure Start centres that had closed. Party sources said that remained his position, but the aim was to make use of existing facilities in the most efficient way possible.
Labour claims that there are 720 fewer Sure Start centres than in 2010 and that many more are running reduced services. It says that if the number of childcare places continues to fall at the current rate, there would be 38,000 fewer places by the end of the next parliament.
The Tories insist that many have moved premises and merged with other organisations and there have only been 45 outright closures since 2010.
