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The Department for Education (DfE) has refused to confirm whether a planned consultation on the future of children’s centres will go ahead.

 

The government’s life chances strategy, which included the planned consultation, was dropped last year. It was originally designed to address child poverty with a plan to expand parent provision and potentially a voucher scheme for parenting classes.

 

Children and Young People Now recently reported that the DfE has stated that the planned children’s centre consultation element of the scheme would launch in early 2017. However, the DfE has since refused to confirm this, telling Under 5: “We are considering the future direction for children’s centres and will provide further detail in due course.”

 

Pre-school Learning Alliance chief executive, Neil Leitch, called the confusion “disappointing and frustrating”. He said: “If the government is indeed planning to launch a consultation on children’s centres, it should simply come out and confirm this. If it isn’t, this is of grave concern as it puts a real question mark over the future of these crucial services.”

 

Neil added: “We urge the DfE to make a clear announcement on this issue as soon as possible. Both those professionals who work in children’s centres, and those who rely on their services, need and deserve to know what is happening without any further delay.”