LABOUR’S parliamentary candidate for South Swindon Anne Snelgrove says a report released today shows the importance of saving the town’s Children’s Centres.
LABOUR’S parliamentary candidate for South Swindon Anne Snelgrove says a report released today shows the importance of saving the town’s Children’s Centres.
National charity 4Children has published its Children’s Centre Census 2013, which reveals that three quarters of the country’s Children’s Centres have seen an increase in the number of parents using them – yet Swindon Borough Council is cutting back on services.
The Census is the only national annual survey of Children’s Centre activities and comes as Swindon Borough Council have decided to cut £390,000 from Children’s Centres in the town, resulting in the closure of centres in Croft, Eldene, Greenmeadow and Saplings.
The cut to funding will mean thousands of families in Swindon will lose access to centres altogether.
Anne said: “At a time when families are increasingly reliant on Children’s Centres in Swindon it beggars belief that the Tory council are cutting such a huge sum from the budget. Redundancy notices are currently going out to our greatly valued Parent Support Workers who do such a great job for families.
“This report shows that Children’s Centres actually save councils money in the long-run so I would call on Swindon Borough Council to think again before making such drastic cuts.”
The cuts to Children’s Centres come at a time when Swindon Borough Council is also slashing £300,000 from library services.
In August Anne launched a petition against cuts to the Children’s Centres which more than 500 people signed up to.
The new Census reveals that for the first time over a million families are benefitting from Children’s Centre services and that Centres are supporting two-thirds of all disadvantaged families with children under the age of five.
The report shows that 73% of Children’s Centres report an increase in the number of families who have used their services over the past 12 months, while 66% are operating on a decreased budget compared to the previous year.
Now 4Children is warning that the valuable progress being made will be put at risk if local authorities make cuts to Children’s Centres.
Anne Longfield OBE, Chief Executive of 4Children said: “Our Census shows that more and more families, particularly those in the greatest need, are turning to Children’s Centres to help pull them through these tough times.
“Local authorities are under extreme financial pressure to make tough decisions, but the long term social and financial rewards will come with filling up, not closing down these crucial Centres, which have already provided a cost-effective lifeline for hundreds of thousands of families.”