Carrying out childcare sufficiency assessments can be a complicated, challenging and resource intensive process for local authorities.

While local authorities in England are legally required to ‘secure sufficient childcare’ for families in their area and to report annually on how well they are doing this, there is no simple, uniform method for reporting on this. This is particularly troublesome given the growing pressures on local authorities amid shrinking budgets and capacity.

Childcare sufficiency assessments should be opportunities to make sure local authorities feel better informed and better equipped – not weighed down and encumbered – in their vital work to meet the childcare needs of their local families.

A template by local authorities for local authorities

Coram Family and Childcare was commissioned by the Greater London Authority to create a simple and helpful childcare sufficiency assessment template for London local authorities. We spoke to 20 local authorities to make sure that we understood how to make the template best meet their needs and support them in their work.

The resulting childcare sufficiency assessment template is a straightforward tool informed by local authorities for local authorities that can be used just as readily by local authorities in and outside of London. The template is freely available to download below.

Childcare sufficiency assessment services from Coram Family and Childcare

The Coram Family and Childcare research team can provide your local authority with additional support on your childcare sufficiency assessment. We can deliver research with parents or providers ourselves, support you to plan and carry out your own research, conduct detailed data analysis, and write your assessment. We will always leave you with the tools to carry on your own analysis in the future.

As the UK’s leading research authority on all things childcare, our expertise is trusted and used by central and local government, the third sector and international bodies. Having worked with many local authorities and from running the National Association of Family Information Services, we have an astute understanding of the complexity and unique challenges each local authority can face in assessing local childcare needs and provision.

Contact us to find out more about how we can support your childcare sufficiency assessment.