Conservative Wiltshire Council successfully bids for more than £1.4m of funding for childcare provision

The Department for Education invited bids for Early Years funding as part of a £50m grant scheme to help deliver the government’s scheme for 30 hours free childcare offer from September 2017.

The bid round targeted grants to areas where there was a need for additional places to support the delivery of the 30 hours offer. Each bidder was required to contribute at least 25 percent of the total funding they requested.

This week it was confirmed six bids from Wiltshire were successful in receiving capital grants. Wiltshire Council supported the providers bidding for the funding. Conservative Councillor Laura Mayes, cabinet member for children’s services said:

“The cost of childcare is often a barrier for parents wishing to return to work and the success of these bids will help to provide sufficient places in Wiltshire and support parents to be able to access affordable childcare. I’d like to congratulate all our successful providers. All the bids were for areas of the county where we identified a need for more early years provision. These successful bids will help us to support parents wanting to take up their 30 hours free entitlement and ensure we provide sufficient early years and childcare in the county.”

Old Sarum Nursery, a not for profit charity, successfully bid for £666,120 to build a new nursery school for the new communities of Old Sarum and Longhedge near Salisbury to help double the number of nursery places available. The successful bids are for: Old Sarum Nursery - £666,120.00, The Mead School - £141,854.00, The Rise, Chippenham - £374,310.00, Westview Nursery, Bradford on Avon - £27,012.00, Smiley Face Nursery, Amesbury - £30,000 and Wiltshire Council strategic bid - £170,225.10