Children's Centres Consultation
Overview
Over the years Dorset Council, unlike many other local authorities, has maintained a network of children’s centres, recognising the importance of local community based information and support for families.
Throughout this time the types of services delivered from the centres have changed and developed. Where services have changed there have been localised community engagement activities to ensure families were kept up to date with developments.
Despite changes all remain to be ‘designated’ children’s centres managed by Dorset Council.
With the introduction of Family Hubs, we now have the opportunity to further develop the offer of information and support to more families and work closely with other organisations such as voluntary and community groups to make sure that families can access help when they need it in their communities.
We would like to hear your views about how we are planning to develop our offer of information and support to families across the Dorset Council area and if you agree with our plans, we will formally notify the Department for Education of the changes we are making to some of our children’s centres to help us offer improved support to more families.
Supporting information
Sure Start children’s centres
Sure Start children’s centres were a government initiative launched in 1999 and developed over the following years aimed at giving children the best possible start in life by providing services delivered by a number of organisations for children under 5 years old and their families. The policy has evolved over time, with significant changes to how children’s centres operate.
Family Hubs
Recent government policy sees the introduction of Family Hubs, which aim to build on this approach, aiming to provide support to even more families and ensuring information and services are available to families with children and young people across all age ranges (0 to 25) through Hub buildings and online offer.
This exciting new of way of working aims to improve the way families get information and support if they have children aged 0 to 19, or to 25 for children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities.
The programme will see a network of Family Hub main buildings with linked outreach points developed across Dorset, enabling information and help for families to be delivered close to home. Family Hub outreach points will include Community Centres, libraries and other local venues
Additionally, the approach helps organisations come together in the planning and delivery of services, working more closely in partnership. This ‘joined up thinking’ will benefit families.
You can find out more about Dorset’s Family Hubs here Family Hub - Dorset Council
Dorset Council is working with the DfE (Department for Education) to develop and deliver a Family Hub approach.
Through the process of developing our Family Hub network across community venues and working with service delivery partners to coordinate provision across local areas, we think we can make better use of some of our children’s centres buildings, with potential for some to be used for different purposes.
Childcare Sufficiency
Local authorities have an important job to make sure there is enough childcare available for families in their area.
Childcare sufficiency means having enough childcare places for all the children who need them. This includes nurseries, childminders, and after-school clubs.
Having enough good quality childcare helps parents to work or study, and it makes sure that children get a good start in life by learning and playing in a safe environment.
Some of our children’s centre buildings are already offering early education and we have an opportunity to increase this provision to meet the needs of local families and respond to the expansion of funded early education places
Additionally, the government has a new plan to help families with the cost of childcare. They are doing this by:
- More Free Hours: By September 2025, working parents will be able to get 30 hours of free childcare each week for children from 9 months old until they start school1.
- Starting Early: From April 2024, parents of 2-year-olds can get 15 hours of free childcare each week1.
- Helping More Families: This plan will help over 150,000 children get free childcare1.
To do this the government plan to offer:
- More Childcare Places: making sure there are enough places for all the children who need them. They are helping nurseries and childminders to take more children2.
- Extra Funding: The government is giving more money to childcare providers to help them offer these free hours2.
Why make changes?
We want to make it easier for you to get the help you might need. By developing our children’s centres to:
- Provide Better Services: Offer more help and support in one place.
- Make Things Easier: Ensure all families can easily find the services they need.
- Support Your Family: Make sure you and your family are able to get the information or help you need when you need it.
As we are developing our Family Hubs, we have identified opportunities to make some slight changes to how some of our buildings are used:
- Some children’s centres will offer increased support to more families as part of our Family Hub network
- Some services may be delivered from different venues within local communities making them more accessible
- Some children’s centres may deliver slightly different services to make sure we have enough childcare places for families that need them
Overall, we will be increasing the service offer for families, making it easier to access information and help when you need it.
This consultation aims to gather views on changing the use of council-owned buildings to improve access to and uptake of support services for families. Feedback from this consultation will be reviewed by the Council and used to form the final plan for service delivery.
When the plan is finalised, we will implement any changes in partnership with families and community members, giving time to enable a smooth transition to new ways of delivery.
Where any proposed changes mean Dorset Council staff will no longer have access to office space in Children’s Centres, suitable, local alternatives will be offered and staff supported to transition to new spaces.
How to get involved
We have started to let families who currently use children’s centres know what changes we are proposing and will be continuing to do so centre by centre, but the table below provides a summary overview of the proposals across Dorset.
The survey can be completed online or with a paper copy survey at your local children’s centre.
Please note, any data collected follows Dorset Council's privacy policy.
Table of proposed changes
The table below provides details of the children’s centres that are currently in operation and that we are seeking your feedback on.
This table does not include children’s centres that have changed use over previous years.
| Locality | Children’s Centre | Further Information | Proposed use* |
|---|---|---|---|
| East | Wimborne | Previously a Children’s Centre providing support to families with children under 5 Years. In 2023, the centre was designated as a Family Hub and now offers additional support to families with children from 0 to 25 | Increased service offer from the centre |
| Corfe Mullen Children’s Centre (Library) | Previously a Children’s Centre outreach point providing support to families with children under 5 Years. In 2023, the centre was designated as a Family Hub network point and now offers additional support to families with children from 0 to 25 | Increased service offer from the centre | |
| Upton (Library) | Previously a Children’s Centre outreach point providing support to families with children under 5 Years. In 2023, the centre was designated as a Family Hub network point and now offers additional support to families with children from 0 to 25 | Increased service offer from the centre | |
| Purbeck | Swanage | Previously a Children’s Centre providing support to families with children under 5 Years. In April 2024, the centre was designated as a Family Hub and now offers additional support to families with children from 0 to 25 | Increased service offer from the centre |
| Wareham Children’s Centre | Children's Centre providing support to families with children under 5 Years. Services are being relocated into the new Family Hub in Wareham, which will offer an increased service for families | Early education / Childcare provision | |
| Bovington Children’s Centre | Children's Centre providing support to families with children under 5 Years. Services will be relocated into a nearby community venue which will offer an increased service for families | Early education / Education / Childcare Provision | |
| Dorchester | Poundbury Children’s Centre | Children's Centre providing support to families with children under 5 Years. Services have been relocated into the new Family Hub in Dorchester which will offer an increased service for families | No further use of this building by Dorset Children’s Services |
| Broadmayne Children’s Centre | Children’s Centre currently offering preschool provision | No change to current offer | |
| Chesil (Weymouth and Portland) | Bincombe Valley Children’s Centre | Children’s Centre providing support to families with children under 5 Years. The centre will be designated as a Family Hub and will offer additional support to families with children from 0 to 25 | Increased service offer from the centre |
| Westham Children’s Centre | Originally a Children’s Centre providing support to families with children under 5 Years. Over recent years has been used for early education | No change to current offer | |
| Mulberry Children’s Centre | Children's Centre providing support to families with children under 5 Years. Services will be relocated into the new Family Hub in Weymouth (venue to be confirmed) which will offer an increased service for families | No further use of this building by Dorset Children’s Services | |
| Outlooks Children’s Centre | Children's Centre providing support to families with children under 5 Years. Services will be relocated into the new Family Hub in Portland which will offer an increased service for families | No further use of this building by Dorset Children’s Services | |
| West | Beaminster Children’s Centre | Previously a Children’s Centre. Children’s Centre services not currently being delivered from this centre. Prout Bridge Youth Project operate from building | No change to current offer |
| Lyme Regis Children’s Centre | Previously a Children’s Centre. Limited service offer currently being delivered from this centre. These services will relocate to St Michael’s Primary School (on same site) | Early education / Childcare provision | |
| Bridport | Previously a Children’s Centre providing support to families with children under 5 Years. In 2023, the centre was designated as a Family Hub and now offers additional support to families with children from 0 to 25 | Increased service offer from the centre | |
| North | Sherborne Children’s Centre | Children’s Centre providing support to families with children under 5 Years. Services to continue to be delivered, but management of the building to be held with the voluntary organisation that manage the site that the children’s centre is based on, rather than Dorset Council | No change to current offer |
| Shaftesbury Children’s Centre | Children’s Centre providing support to families with children under 5 Years and early education provision. Some services to relocate to local community venues (to be confirmed) | Early education / Childcare provision | |
| Blandford Children’s Centre | Children’s Centre providing support to families with children under 5 Years including early education provision | No change to current offer |
*Please note that proposals are subject to the outcome of this consultation and also identification of suitably qualified education / childcare providers and agreement of contractual terms. We propose that all children’s centres that continue to operate as detailed above, are designated and renamed as Family Hub Network Points, enabling increased access to information and support for families with children of all ages.
Thank you for your support. We look forward to working together to continue to develop our offer of information and support to families.
For more information, at the bottom of the page in the 'Related' section, there is also a link to a 'Frequently Asked Questions' page.
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