Failing schools to be allowed to reject parental childcare requests

Under proposals first announced last October, parents and childcare providers will be given the so-called "right to request" from autumn this year.

Draft guidance that went out for consultation in December listed three circumstances where it would be reasonable for a school to reject a request – if they had no space available, if there was a low level of demand, or if the space they had was unsuitable and could not be easily adapted.

However, 45 per cent of respondents to the consultation said there were other circumstances where it would be reasonable for a school to reject parental requests.

As a result, the government’s response to the consultation reveals that other grounds for schools rejecting requests will be added to guidance on how the process works.

“Schools will take the lead in managing the ‘rights to request’ processes and the final decisions about what action to take,” the government response states.

“However, it is important that schools are transparent in managing parental requests and that requests are not rejected unduly.

“We looked carefully at the suggestions of additional grounds to reject parent requests, and the guidance has been changed to include: suitable alternative provision in the local area; and [if the] school is in special measures or has serious weaknesses.”  

The government initially proposed that a minimum threshold of around 20 requests should be made before schools consult with parents more widely on their childcare needs.

However, some respondents to the consultation felt the number “was potentially misleading or unhelpful”, or that the number was either too low or too high.

As a result, the guidance has been revised to indicate that schools themselves should decide what the threshold should be, "taking into account the circumstances of the school".

The government has also suggested that schools in rural areas should consider joining up with others to aggregate local need for childcare provision.

The government said it plans to publish the guidance in the summer term and introduce the "right to request" at the start of the autumn term 2016.