Pen Green Centre for children and their families

Pen Green Centre in Corby has said its services will be decimated if proposals to redistribute its funding to other providers go through.

In a now familiar story the leading early years centre based on the Lloyds estate in Corby is under threat once again as the local education authority run by North Northamptonshire Council could take away hundreds of thousands from its budget to help fund other places.

Education funding comes down from central government and is split into funding pots which are largely dictated by formulas.

Pen Green says that in proposing to change the funding distribution from one funding pot, the tightly squeezed new local education authority, run by North Northamptonshire Council is altering long held systems, which could be catastrophic and lead to job losses and service reductions. It is one of just four nurseries (maintained) run by the local authority.

A statement on its website says:

“North Northants Council are proposing to redirect 78% (£798,782) of our core funding across the North and into West Northants to try to balance the maintained nursery schools budgets, as Local Authority (LA) officers believe this is more equitable.  This is a savage and short-sighted act in their first year as a new unitary authority.  The implications of this proposal will be catastrophic for children and families across Corby.  Our services for children and families will be decimated.

“Pen Green Centre was set up as an Integrated Centre in 1983 and has always received core funding for this work. In 2006 the Local authority officers advised Pen Green Centre leaders to move all funding to education as this would mean more secure funding and long term sustainability.

In 2016/17 when national funding for early years changed, the DfE recognised that Pen Green Integrated Centre did not fit neatly into the Maintained Nursery Schools Supplementary Funding model (MNSSF) as we are a unique centre. The DfE, through discussion with colleagues, the minister for Early Years and LA officers, agreed to continue to fund the unique Integrated model and Pen Green was awarded the core funding through the MNSSF from central government.  We have continued to receive our core funding each year, albeit a slight reduction, from the MNSSF.”

Funding is decided by the North Northamptonshire school’s forum – a body made up of head teachers from across the county. It will make a final decision about the early years funding allocation on March 17. (No locally elected politicians have an input into the school forum decisions, a situation which NN Journal understands is causing some concern).