Birmingham Childcare Sufficiency Assessment 
On behalf of Birmingham City Council BMG Research will be surveying 4,000 households across all 40 wards in Birmingham, between December 2010 and February 2011 to identify childcare needs of families. For the first time, the assessment will also assess aspects of short breaks for disabled children where these overlap with childcare, for example, holiday schemes, after-school clubs and weekend clubs.

BMG will identify and carry out interviews with families who have at least one child living in the household aged 0 to 16 years, including 17 to 18 years if the child has a disability or special need.

The findings will be used to monitor childcare usage and requirements, to ensure that sufficient childcare of the right type is provided to meet families’ needs over the next two to three years. It will be important to get responses from a wide cross-section of households as possible, to assist the Council to effectively support childcare providers, parents and their children.

Using a face-to-face method ensures that the sample of parents achieved is representative of the city, and that it includes hard-to-reach groups e.g. those who may have difficulties reading a postal questionnaire in English. A version of the questionnaire will also be made available online in 2011 for families who prefer to participate in this way.

Questions will predominantly focus on the experience, quality, and affordability of using childcare / short breaks and the types of childcare/ short breaks families are seeking now or may be seeking in future.

In addition to parent interviews, a survey of 300 childcare providers and 100 employers will be undertaken; as well as undertaking numerous ‘focus group’ consultations to investigate the softer issues behind the statistics.

The findings of these consultations will be integrated into a ‘Gap Analysis’ by Cordis Bright Consulting, who will work together with BMG and the Council to highlight any discrepancies between the demand for and the supply of childcare, whether in terms of location, type of childcare, provision for children with additional needs, times of year, and so on.

The survey is undertaken in accordance with the Childcare Act 2006, Section 11 and follows a similar survey undertaken by BMG on behalf of Birmingham City Council’s Childcare Sufficiency Assessment in 2006/7. By identifying parental demand through data provided by the BMG survey and assessing provision currently available, gaps in the local childcare market were highlighted and a targeted approach was applied to meeting these needs.

We would like to thank in advance all those who will assist in this survey and in particular those who provide feedback about their families. The survey is carried out in confidence and in accordance with the Data Protection Act and Market Research Society Regulations. The results are reported in the form of statistics, with everyone’s answers added together.

For more information about this survey please contact Ceri Matthias on 0121 333 6006 or email ceri.matthias@bmgresearch.co.uk