Sufficiency & Standards
The sufficiency assessment was undertaken so that Wolverhampton Council could assess the supply and demand of childcare within the city. Wolverhampton council is responsible for planning the development of flexible, affordable and accessible childcare to meet the needs of children and their parents.
The Early Years, Childcare and Play Service required a comprehensive and detailed assessment of parental demands in respect of childcare and early years education and how this compares with the current patterns of supply. The assessment needed to cover the whole of Wolverhampton, but also to take into account patterns of demand and supply in each of the 15 Local Area and Neighbourhood Arrangement Areas (LANAs)
The assessment involved a comprehensive research exercise including a thorough assessment of the demand for childcare within Wolverhampton at both a city wide and more localised LANA level.
The fundamental aims of the assessment were:
- To assess the demand for childcare in each LANA
- To assess the supply of childcare provision in each LANA
- To analyse the gap between demand and supply in each LANA
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The council will be using the information gathered during the sufficiency assessment to form an action plan detailing how they intend to address the issues and gaps identified in the assessment.
The sufficiency assessment and its findings will also be used as part of the strategic planning process of future childcare in the city.
The sufficiency assessment will be reviewed and updated as appropriate on an annual basis with another full assessment to be carried out in 2011.