hypochondriac

Well he is going to leave eventually. Let's see what transpires and where we end up if it's true.

Pretty sure that wasn't saints forever but it's successor.

Thanks for confirming.

This reminds me of the playforyourclub thing when we were up against the mighty borussia munchengladbach.

I heard he isn't banned but he wasn't personally allowed to buy a ticket? Happy to be corrected.

I think some people owe the programme makers an apology. A largely sympathetic portrayal this week Tbh.

No idea. I've just seen the emails from the contractor complaining.

Ha love that

It's true. Of course you will disbelieve it. Still a fact though.

Definitely but I wasn't sure if he was talking about more than one child.

Cortese fired a contractor for farting #truestory.

Yes at 2 they will get 2 year funding for a certain amount of hours per week. That does seem like quite a lot although I'm not familiar with London prices to be fair. I have always felt that a mix of nursery and home care is the best idea. Nursery is important for social development and for developing independence away from parents but leaving a child in a nursery all the time (unless you are forced to due to work etc) is in my opinion negligent parenting.

I would guess that is about average for the North which is obviously going to be cheaper than down here.

We run pre-schools within two schools. We find that whilst this works for small groups, it is unworkable for larger groups and definitely would not work with younger ages (2 and under). Really school buildings are unsuitable for younger age groups because that isn't who they are designed for. The benefit of having your own building is that you can design things specifically for that age group. Nurseries within schools are fine but they aren't suitable for all age groups or needs. One issue we have found is that typically schools lock up at three. If we were to try to run a nursery that closed at 6 we would run into problems. Additionally, working with a school can be problematic. Typically there is less garden area (our gardens within our own buildings I think are one of our main strengths) and you have to negotiate a lot if you want things like more cupboard or storage space which can be a headache. The cynic in me would suggest that the government are keen for nurseries within schools because that way they can get them operating in a school environment (sitting at tables and "learning") much quicker and earlier. The argument appears to be that rather than letting them adjust in reception, if nursery becomes school-lite then they will behave once they start school. It's a terrible idea. BTF how long is that session and does it include lunch?

I assure you, the way we run is not hugely profitable! We make a small profit but as I said that goes back into the business. Things which are killers- business rates, fire safety regulations (tens of thousands of pounds for that), maintenance costs, pest control etc and that is just the last few months. Costs do vary depending on where you are in the country, but a full day for one child for us is about 46 (under 3) and 43 (over 3). Last time I checked anyway.

Given what I have outlined in my earlier posts, how does that work for my company?

Our view has always been that we would love to pay our staff more and we pay what we can afford. I worked out the other day that for the last three months of the year I lived on £200 a month so I do know how hard our staff work and also how important their job is. I think that article is very fair since it does outline the costs. The government in general are very dismissive of early childcare and are looking to start school style education at an earlier and earlier age yet this contradicts the evidence in front of our eyes. In my view we should do what other countries do and realise that if we can provide proper love, care and learning through play with our youngest in society then we reap the benefits later down the line when we have a generation who have learnt life skills and who are more likely to look after themselves and the world around them. The government paying less into childcare is just another example of how low their view of early childcare actually is. My main gripe at the moment is the waste of money that is the Ofsted inspections. These are now triggered due to a complaint of any nature. Our last three complaints have been early ones and have been malicious in nature. All three were ridiculous complaints either from neighbours making up stuff or parents who rang Ofsted after we asked them to pay what they owed. In every case the complaints were found to be unfounded. Ofsted spend all their time running around checking complaints rather than doing their job and I know this is not just my nurseries. My idea of a utopia for childcare is when there is a recognition (as there is in many countries such as Australia) that early years are as important if not more so than school and where the best nurseries are trusted to provide proper care and stimulation for children based around their interests rather than doing observations in order to satisfy the Early Years curriculum. The importance of learning through play has been denigrated by the government yet studies have consistently proven them to be the most effective and most vital part of a young child's life. Sweden have it cracked- they don't start any sort of academic learning or "school readiness" until they actually start school yet they have the highest literacy rate in Europe once they start secondary school! Unfortunately over here we have a culture of blame that says that when bad things happen someone has to be at fault so it can never happen here. Staff are all scared stiff that they will be accused of negligence so you can never have the same learning experiences or the freedom to do their job. I have always considered it curious that a minister in charge of something like defence or childcare has to be chosen from the cabinet. This means that they are handicapped before they start since they typically have absolutely no experience of the profession they are looking at. I am told that in other countries such as Germany there is no such requirement. It is evident that the current minister in charge of Early Years education (Elizabeth Truss) has absolutely no experience of childcare and how it works. It seems strange to give such a vitally important role to such a complete novice. I do realise this has gone slightly off track and I apologise but it's something I feel strongly about!

If I wanted to I could streamline the business, make a lot more money than I do and pay everyone a living wage. The problem is we would lose services that are vital for the community. Any profit I make goes straight back into the business which benefits everyone since the bigger we are the more we can afford to pay staff. It isn't as black and white as people make out and being an employer does not make you inherently evil or a money grabber (as some like to make out!)

just change the stars in the address bar to b*tching

Well as I run children's nurseries, my choice would be to put up prices for families that are already struggling. Two of my settings lose money but are kept open because they are in deprived areas where their services are needed. Thankfully there is much more to childcare than simply figures on a balance sheet.

And all the living wage stuff unfairly penalises certain businesses. If I were forced to pay a living wage to all employees then I would have to close and everyone would be unemployed. I pay what I can afford and have a lower wage myself than many of my employees. It annoys me how all employers are portrayed as money grabbing. We are actually looking at charitable status since we don't do what we do for the money.

The benefits system is wonderful when used correctly but reforms were badly needed. It does appear that the rules have been tightened in recent months (though I admit I do not have an in-depth knowledge of the revised system) and as a consequence, hopefully certain members of society will be unable to falsely make claims they are not entitled to.

Is the correct answer. When used correctly, benefits are a necessary part of living in a civilised society. The issues are with the types of people featured on this programme who have been playing the system and cheating.

No surprise that blog is from a rabid lefty who supports dancing on a dead woman's grave.

We were incredibly poor that evening. It was very disheartening.