The government’s rollout of funded childcare for two-year-olds has left many working parents disappointed, despite the promise that it would help to reduce costs for families.
In reality, owing to underfunding, many childcare providers have been forced to increase costs to compensate for the 15 free hours they are now required to provide.
The result is that many families have seen no difference to childcare bills and, in some cases, the increase in day rates has made childcare more expensive than before.
As a female-dominated profession, teaching is hit particularly hard by this lack of much-needed infrastructure, with mothers more likely than fathers to drop out of the workforce when childcare is unaffordable.
Indeed, “incompatible childcare logistics” is one of the top five reasons why women aged 30-39 are the largest group to leave the profession every year. Last year it was 8,695 - 20 per cent of all leavers.
Research from The Maternity Teacher/Paternity Teacher Project reveals that this incompatibility comes in four forms:
- Pre-school childcare and primary wraparound provision are too expensive
- Childcare is geographically inaccessible
- Opening hours are too short in comparison to a teacher’s typical working day
- Provision is simply unavailable.
Clearly, fixing childcare for education professionals could have a huge impact on retention by making it more feasible for them to remain in work. So what can we do to protect our workforce if national government initiatives seem to be failing?
Flexibility
One solution growing in popularity, backed by the Department for Education, is greater flexibility for staff at the beginning and end of the working day.
Lucy, a pupil premium lead with two primary-aged children, tells us how this worked for her: “In my previous school, I worked 0.6 [of a full-time schedule] and came in after 9am: I didn’t have a tutor group, and my lessons were timetabled after tutor time. That meant I could do pick-up and drop-off for my own children.”
Many schools are embracing flexible working so hopefully this is something that becomes more common in the future.
Partnering with local providers
Where schools have the capacity, and there is demand, on-site crèches, or negotiating priority places and discounts for children of staff members at local childcare providers, can reduce logistical barriers.
This model is used at Rotherly Day Nursery, situated in the grounds of Westgate School in Winchester. The daycare centre offers provision for children aged from three months to five years, is open from 8am-6pm and offers priority places to children of employees of the Westgate School, who also receive discounted fees.
Hilary, a pastoral leader who has worked at Westgate for seven years, has used Rotherly for both of her daughters: “The discount makes a real financial difference, but more than this, it makes me feel really valued by the school, as if I am important to them,” she says.
Many schools and multi-academy trusts invest in employee benefits such as gym memberships and dental care. Perhaps ring-fenced childcare costs at any chosen provider could be an effective recruitment and retention offer too?
Priority places
Teacher-parents currently need a time machine to manage the chronological gymnastics of a morning commute: if a place in breakfast club is unavailable, many are expected to be waving their own children goodbye at the same time they are registering their form.
It is common practice to prioritise the children of serving staff members in admissions policies. Theoretically, then, a model like that at Rotherly of protecting childcare places for teachers could also be extended to wraparound providers.
Jane, a middle leader on the south coast, benefits from this arrangement: “All staff have priority on breakfast club and after-school club places,” she explains.
Wraparound care providers and local authorities that are willing to take a step further could rewrite admissions policies to reserve school and wraparound places for the children of all teachers in their region.
Local teachers could then have first choice of the most conveniently located primary school, rather than one within their catchment area but miles away from their workplace. In turn, schools would benefit from a healthier regional workforce where more experienced female teachers are retained.
Hopefully, farsighted leaders will recognise the power of such collaborative policies and bold initiatives - after all, if women aged 30-39 are the biggest leaver group in education, improvements here will have the biggest impact.
Rather than waiting for solutions from the government, the education sector should be proactive in protecting its workforce and boosting retention through changes that schools, MATs and local authorities have direct control over.
Emma Sheppard is a lead practitioner for English and the founder of the Maternity Teacher/Paternity Teacher Project
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