Executive Summary
All respondents have indicated that it is important to have
access to Children’s Centre services in Foxhill itself, with 88% of
these indicating that it is very important. This demonstrates a
clear need for service provision on this estate.
There is a preference for play activities that promote play
between parent, carer and child, as opposed to activities for
children only. There is also a clear need
for an enclosed outdoor play area – all respondents replied that
this was important or very important to them. Replies
regarding the current provision of flexible childcare in the area
illustrate that there are perceived gaps in provision for both the
under 2s and the 2- 4s, with at least 90% of respondents stating
this. Over 40% of parents and carers would prefer pre-school
care for both age groups to address the gap that is currently
perceived. Although the new development does not provide space for
full-time day care, there is potential for use as a preschool in
the future.
There was a demand for health information about healthy eating
and baby massage. It must be noted, however, that when this
question was asked, healthy eating was given as an example of the
type of healthcare advice that could be offered. It is necessary to
consider whether or not the replies have come up had we not listed
these examples. However, healthy eating information has come up as
an area of need in consultations of a similar nature in other areas
so this would suggest that healthy eating is an area of
interest.
A similar situation has arisen from the question regarding
additional types of information. Advice on benefits and
training/employment were all popular preferences, but again, these
were all given as examples within the question.
However, the numbers involved, especially regarding ‘Benefits
Advice’ suggest that these are areas of information that parents
and carers are particularly keen to have access to.
Finally, this situation arises for the question about family
support. The most popular choices (parenting courses, counselling,
and practical help with parenting) were all examples given in the
question. However, despite this, half of all respondents felt they
would like access to parenting courses, a proportion that suggests
a major need.