CYP Now - Holiday daycare places plummet

The number of places at holiday clubs for children dropped by 13 per cent in a year, a government study found.

At the same time, fees for holiday clubs rose from £1.70 an hour to £2.20 an hour on average.

Sessional daycare for children also plunged as demand grew for full-time childcare, according to the Childcare and Early Years Providers Survey 2007.

The study, which surveyed more than 6,000 childcare workers to gain a picture of childcare provision in England in 2007, also found just one per cent of the childcare and early years workforce were male. However, men made up eight per cent of staff in after-school clubs and 16 per cent of those in holiday clubs.

All other types of childcare provision had seen an increase in places since 2001. The report said: "In 2007, a quarter of full daycare providers said they had changed from offering sessional care, most saying they did this because of parental demand for longer hours."

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