Market Position Statement

Introduction

Cambridgeshire County Council invites early years education (EYE) and childcare providers, regardless of their governance, e.g., childminders, private sector, voluntary groups, independent, school or academy-run bodies, to expand or develop new EYE and childcare to meet the identified pressures in the county.

Section 2, Approach, sets out the basis on which the Council considers provision.

Section 3, Opportunities for Provision, highlights the areas of the county deemed to have demand for additional capacity.

Approach

In 2022, the county council launched a Pseudo-Dynamic Purchasing System (PDPS) for providers of EYE and childcare. This is the only means through which providers can apply to run settings in council-owned premises. It enables a streamlined method of selecting the most suitable provider while minimising gaps in provision for Cambridgeshire’s families.

If you or your organisation are interested in securing contracts to run EYE and childcare from council premises, including schools, you should apply to join the PDPS. Submissions to register will be accepted again in spring 2024, when finalised, the timetable for submissions will be published via the PDPS.

The form to register interest can be accessed via the Opportunities - Search results (due-north.com).

When an opportunity becomes available providers who have successfully joined the PDPS will be notified directly. A specification outlining the service required will be provided, to enable providers to ascertain if it is something they wish to consider. Interested, providers can then submit an online application form.

It is important to note that providers who are not registered on the PDPS, either because they have been unsuccessful in their application to join or have not applied, will not be able to apply for any opportunities on council-owned premises, even if they are already offering the service from the location in question.

Further information will also be available on the Learn Together website which can be found at the PDPS.

If you have any questions about the PDPS, please contact placeplanningreferrals0-19@cambridgeshire.gov.uk.

Providers wishing to develop or expand in response to this market position statement are strongly encouraged to carry out their market research and analysis of available data to safeguard their interests. Please see the early years business sustainability: supplier list and guides for further support with this.

Cambridgeshire Early Years and Childcare (CambsEYC) also provides a wide range of resources.

For more details on local areas, please see the Directory of Services (cambridgeshire.gov.uk) and My Cambridgeshire.

To help the council ensure against over-supply, providers are requested to inform the 0-19 Places Planning & Sufficiency Team if they plan to open or expand a setting in Cambridgeshire placeplanningreferrals0-19@cambridgeshire.gov.uk

The county council undertakes to do the following in its efforts to develop sufficient EYE and childcare:

1. Raise awareness of development opportunities by regularly publishing and updating our view of pressures, to allow the market to develop responses as appropriate.
2. Support prospective providers, where possible, in developing their responses to identified pressures.
3. Ensure there are sufficient 15-hour and 30-hour funded places for eligible children to meet demand across the county. This includes all three- and four-year-olds, targeted two-year-olds and children of working parents from two years old from April 2024 (nine months old from September 2024). See section 4 for details of the new entitlements.
4. Map supply and demand of wraparound across the County and identify and respond to areas where development or expansion may be required.
5. Procure early years and childcare for new developments (e.g., new community developments) or where demand for statutory early years and childcare has not been met by the market over an extended period.
6. Adhere to the highest standards of fairness, transparency, and consistency in its procurement activity. For more details please see Business with the council - Cambridgeshire County Council.
7. Support providers to create a market with a wide range of childcare services, including, but not limited to full day care, sessional provision and childminders.

Opportunities for Provision

The tables below set out the priority EYE and childcare developments required across Cambridgeshire. This is not an exhaustive list, other areas may require additional places, particularly where there is a new housing development.

Wrap-around care 

Northstowe is one area where demand for wrap-around (breakfast club and after-school) care, has been identified. If you feel there is a need for wrap-around care in another community, please contact the Place Planning Team via placeplanningreferrals0-19@cambridgeshire.gov.uk. If you would like to set up a provision please consult with the local schools, Early Years settings and communities to assess demand and again contact the Place Planning Team.

Pre-school provision for two, three and four-year-olds will be located in all new primary schools. Full day care and wrap around care will be required for all ages.

*Note: This is dependent on the outcome of a property assessment.

Other Relevant Information

Extended Entitlement

As part of the Spring 2023 budget, the Government announced a plan to expand funded EYE and childcare across the country. This plan will be rolled out incrementally as follows:

• From April 2024, eligible working parents of two-year-olds will be able to access 15 hours of funded EYE per week.
• From September 2024, 15 hours of free childcare will be extended to all children of eligible working parents from the age of nine months.
• From September 2025, working parents of children under the age of five will be entitled to 30 hours of free childcare per week.

In June 2023 the Department of Education released an initial assessment of the need for childcare places in Cambridgeshire for April 2024 and September 2024. This came with numerous caveats, the DfE themselves said “All figures are indicative and uncertain”. Consequently, officers decided to build a forecasting tool based on local data and previous local trends that are available at county, district and school catchment levels. As officers have worked through the 'Cambridgeshire model' it has been cross-checked with the DfE assessment to identify geographical areas where demand may outstrip supply at this point. The areas identified are:

• Littleport
• Wisbech
• Whittlesey
• St Neots
• Northstowe
• Cambourne

Provision for children with SEND

All children are entitled to an education that enables them to achieve the best possible educational and other outcomes and become confident young children with a growing ability to communicate their own views and ready to make the transition into compulsory education. All early years providers in the maintained, private, voluntary and independent sectors that local authority funds are required to have regard to the 0-25 SEND Code of Practice. (Advice template (publishing.service.gov.uk))

There has been a significant increase in the number of children with SEND over the past five years in Cambridgeshire. Providers considering opening or extending provision in Cambridgeshire should consider how the setting will be able to make reasonable adjustments to support children with SEND to access funded EYE.

Wraparound Care

The national wraparound childcare programme is part of the childcare reforms announced in the 2023 spring budget. The government’s ambition is that by 2026, all parents and carers of primary school-aged children who need it will be able to access term-time childcare in their local area from Monday to Friday 8 am to 6 pm. This will enable parents to access employment, work a full day including travel time, and will improve labour market participation. Mapping of supply and demand of wraparound across the county is currently taking place to identify where the development or expansion of wraparound provision may be required.