The Green Children’s Center was saved from closure after the Council U-turn

A legendary nursery school called the world’s most famous children’s center and a blueprint for Sure Start was saved from closing immediately after the 11th hour U-turn in the face of widespread opposition from Tory councilors.

North Northamptonshire Council dramatically announced through a full and emotional public meeting on Tuesday that it would use £ 650k of reserves to keep Penn Green Nursery and three state-run nurseries floating in Corby.

The council came under fire from local parents and early-year experts who accused it of “flattening out” and “out of touch with reality” when it proposed a £ 520,000 ax from Penn Green to support three cash-hungry nurseries. .

Penn Green’s proposed cuts have become a powerful symbol of the government’s alleged neglect of early-year services, where more than 1,000 children’s centers have closed over the past decade and its failure to do so has led to widespread vacation and economically deprived patch Northamptonshire, its leveling-up. For discussion.

A few minutes before the U-turn, councilors warned that financial aid was impossible. But Penn Green welcomed the last-minute change of heart, although it warned that part of the new funding would still leave £ 175k out of pocket, leading to service cuts and not resolving long-term funding issues.

“They are still being leveled, and there is still no recognition of the importance of our uniquely integrated services.” We’re still losing money, and while it’s great news that three other nurseries have been saved, we’re still in a lot of danger, “said Angela Prazer, joint director of Penn Green.

Jason Smithers, leader of North Northamptonshire Council, said: “We have seen and heard the passion and commitment from all of our nurseries and their lawyers.

Helen Hayes MP, shadow minister for children and early years, said: “Parents will be happy and relieved to hear that Penn Green’s immediate future is secure. But this last-minute U-turn paints a picture of the constant uncertainty that nurseries and families face.

“Across the country, thousands of child care providers are facing a similar cliff edge after decades of Conservative government neglect, which has made childcare increasingly unavailable and unaffordable for families.”

The council said the funding – অন্য 100,000 each for the other three nurseries that did not offer comprehensive integrated services – was temporary to give the nurseries “adaptation time”, suggesting that if overall funding did not increase, Penn Green would remain in the same position within a year. Can find himself.

Penn Green Hall is a world-leading model of integrated early-year care, combining high-quality nursery, health, family support and social care services under one roof to provide the best possible start for families in a deprived former steel town plagued by poverty, poor health. And the consequences of bad education.

More than 1,000 children a year go through its many services, it trains thousands of child care and family workers and gives birth to a rich internationally renowned research center. From Auckland to Bologna, from Glasgow to Kazakhstan, hundreds of people from all over the world visit every year.

It is valued locally for its day-to-day success: reaching out to struggling young parents and families and providing support wrapped around them, puts their lives on track. Several parents gave emotional speeches at the council meeting about how it has saved them and their children from depression.

A statement from local primary school headmaster Tess McQuaid was read out at the council meeting. In it, she recalls how she went to Penn Green to help with the birth of a 17-year-old twin 11 weeks ago. This not only gave her an emotionally abusive relationship but also gave her a place to go back to her studies.

“I wouldn’t be where I am today without Penn Green,” he testified. It added: “I can honestly say that the excellent advocates working at the Penn Green Center gave me the strength and support I needed when I needed it most.”

A Penn Green guard told the Guardian that in the end, a Tory-led council proposed a massive reduction in Penn Green’s budget, to slap the most deprived areas of the county, to build three nurseries elsewhere. “If you cut center funding, it’s not going to be flat – it’s going to be flat.”

The latest threat to Penn Green – there have been several – reminds politicians of this Tory-occupied marginalized parliamentary seat of the local people’s deep affection for the famous nursery.

One says: “It is [Pen Green] A family. It’s like your grandmother’s house on Sunday. You know, it’s always there for you. “