Childrens Contact Centres

Dear Mr Russell

Freedom of Information Act Requests - Reference Numbers 463159 and
471768

Further to your requests dated 6th and 14th October 2009, please find
below answers in the same order for ease of reference in respect of
Cambridgeshire Children's Centres.

* Please supply a list of all Cambridgeshire County Council Sure
Start Children's Centres

A list of all Children's Centres which are now open and
offering services is attached. By April 2010, a further 12 Centres will
have been developed, giving a total of 40 across Cambridgeshire.
<<Contact table for information requests.doc>>
* Are these run privately or council controlled?

Of the 28 Centres currently established, 21 are local
authority managed, 4 are managed by Nursery or Early Years settings, and
3 by voluntary organisations under contract to the County Council.

* If council controlled under which department do they fall?

Children and Young People's Services.

* Are these run for profit, if council controlled, supply the
accounts.

Children's Centres are non-profit making and budget
information for 2009/10 for all Centres in Phase 1 and 2 of
development is attached.
<<budgets 0910.xls>>
* What are the policies in place and who created these?

All local authority managed Centres are subject to
County Council policies and procedures. As part of the procurement
process, policies used by Centres run by voluntary organisations are
subject to checks prior to securing the contract. This is carried out
during the tendering and commissioning stage to ensure they are fit for
purpose, and to minimise risk.

* Is it correct that adults are expected to sign in, in pencil
that could easily be rubbed out?

Families are asked to sign into any building where
services are being offered. In addition, the County Council uses a
database called E-Start and parents/carers complete and sign a form
which enables us to capture information for this database. In this way
we can record who is attending a Children's Centre and ensure that we
are reaching families in that area.

* How many children on a yearly basis do these Centres cater for
in each area?

A table detailing the numbers of 0-5 year olds in each
Centre's reach area is attached for your information.
<<0-5 reach area information.xls>>
* What services do these centres provide?

Children's Centres support all families with children
under five and offer easier access to health and family support, help
with finding jobs and training, drop-in sessions and activities, and
information about local childcare and early education. Example of some
of the activities on offer are:
* Drop-in play sessions
1 Young parents' groups
2 Child development courses
3 Positive parenting support
4 Access to midwives and health visitors
5 Baby and toddler activities
6 A meeting place for childminders
7 Healthy eating activities
8 Employment and benefit advice
9 Speech and language sessions
10 Support for families with children who
have additional needs
11 Information about local childcare.

If you are unhappy with the service you have received in relation to
your request and wish to make a complaint or request a review of our
decision, you should write to Helen Maneuf, Head of Audit and Risk
Management, Box Res 1405, Room 307, Shire Hall, Cambridge CB3 0AP within
40 days of the date of this letter.
If you are not content with the outcome of the internal review, you have
the right to apply directly to the Information Commissioner for a
decision. The Information Commissioner can be contacted at: Information
Commissioner's Office, Wycliffe House, Water Lane, Wilmslow, Cheshire,
SK9 5AF. Generally, the ICO will not undertake a review or make a
decision on a request until the internal review process has been
completed.
Yours sincerely

Paul Ainsworth

Communications Manager
[email address]

The information in this email is confidential and may be legally privileged. It is intended solely for the addressee. If you receive this email by mistake please notify the sender and delete it immediately. Opinions expressed are those of the individual and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Cambridgeshire County Council. All sent and received email from Cambridgeshire County Council is automatically scanned for the presence of computer viruses and security issues.

Visit www.cambridgeshire.gov.uk

Dear Mr Russell

Please find attached Cambridgeshire County Council's response to your
request for an internal review.

Please contact me if I can be of any further assistance to you.

Kind regards

Jo Withey
Information Governance Officer
Information Governance

<<463159_Russell_2009_12_17_Review response.pdf>>
The information in this email is confidential and may be legally privileged. It is intended solely for the addressee. If you receive this email by mistake please notify the sender and delete it immediately. Opinions expressed are those of the individual and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Cambridgeshire County Council. All sent and received email from Cambridgeshire County Council is automatically scanned for the presence of computer viruses and security issues.

Visit www.cambridgeshire.gov.uk