
Reading Borough Council is currently consulting on plans to reduce the number of children's centres it maintains from 13 to just four - a cut of almost 70 per cent.
The move is set to save the authority a third of its current children's centre budget, reducing the current budget of £1.2m by £400,000 to around £800,000.
The plans will end delivery of many open-access services for all families in favour of more targeted provision for the most vulnerable.
Services will also be redesigned to focus on pre-birth to three-year-olds, with reduced activities for children aged from three to five and their families. Instead, these will be delivered from four "hub" areas, split across separate council buildings and in homes.
Register Now to Continue Reading
Thank you for visiting Children & Young People Now and making use of our archive of more than 60,000 expert features, topics hubs, case studies and policy updates. Why not register today and enjoy the following great benefits:
What's Included
-
Free access to 4 subscriber-only articles per month
-
Email newsletter providing advice and guidance across the sector
Already have an account? Sign in here