Clause 52 - Requirement to register: other later years providers for children under eight
Childcare Bill
3:15 pm
David Amess (Southend West, Conservative)
With this it will be convenient to take amendment No. 244, in page 26, line 6, after ‘school’, insert
‘who is approved by the proprietor of the school.’
Nick Gibb (Shadow Minister, Education; Bognor Regis and Littlehampton, Conservative)
These two amendments try to bring into the exceptions from having to register later years child minding—the situation where the child minding is provided by a school, so it would not be required to be registered is one such exception—the situation where the child care is provided by a third-party child minder but within the school premises and approved by the proprietor of the school. Will the Minister consider whether that should also be included in the list of exceptions?
Beverley Hughes (Minister of State (Children, Young People and Families), Department for Education and Skills; Stretford and Urmston, Labour)
As the hon. Gentleman says, where a provision on a school site is provided directly by the governing body—the proprietor—it will come within the province of Ofsted’s general inspection of the education facilities on the site. However, as he rightly says, there will be occasions when responsibility for that provision on a school site using school premises may not lie clearly with the school. Therefore, it will not be picked up in the inspection process, because it is not being provided directly by the governing body. It will be provided through a contract with a third party, using some of the school’s rooms or facilities, but with no accountability direct to the governing body. That is the key point.
In such situations and to ensure that provision complies with agreed criteria and children are safe, non-school providers, if I may call them that for a moment, must be required to register with the new Ofsted child care register that we have discussed. Therefore, when schools look after children under eight, even if they do so on school premises, under agreement with the school but not directly by it—
Beverley Hughes (Minister of State (Children, Young People and Families), Department for Education and Skills; Stretford and Urmston, Labour)
I was explaining that where schools directly, through the governing body, provide child care on their own site, they will come under the auspices of the school inspection, but where they contract with other providers, those providers must register with the Ofsted child care register. That will enable us to ensure that all the care assessed through an extended school is of a consistent standard. We also plan to issue guidance, so that schools should link only with private and voluntary providers of child care for children over eight that are registered with Ofsted.
Those arrangements will help schools, which will be able to contract with providers in the knowledge that Ofsted has checked their suitability, as they will already be registered with the Ofsted child care register. There is then no need for schools to go through that process when they are considering contracting with a certain organisation. I believe that that is the best arrangement for parents, schools and providers, and I hope that, with those assurances, the hon. Gentleman will seek leave to withdraw the amendment.
Nick Gibb (Shadow Minister, Education; Bognor Regis and Littlehampton, Conservative)
The Minister has been helpful in providing clarity about the position regarding a third-party provider of child minding in a school. She makes a compelling case for that provision to continue to be inspected by Ofsted. On that note, I beg to ask leave to withdraw the amendment.