Nursery consultation unclear and confusing - report

A public consultation into plans to close three North East Lincolnshire nurseries was "unclear and confusing", an independent report found.

The proposed closure of Great Coates Village Nursery, Scartho Nursery School and Reynolds Day Care were halted following protests last year.

Wilkin Chapman LLP's report said the purpose of the consultation, shelved on 14 July, was "communicated poorly".

North East Lincolnshire Council said it fully accepted the report's findings.

The report was commissioned by the authority's chief executive after the consultation was scrapped a month after opening, amid protests against the proposals.

According to the Local Democracy Reporting Service, the council leader and councillors only became aware of the consultation after concerned members of the public contacted them.

The report also found the council's ruling cabinet was supposed to be informed as early as March about a future consultation. Instead, they were notified during an informal meeting on 12 June, days before it opened.

"The consultation exercise suffered from a lack of an effective and consistent plan from the start," the report stated.

Decisions were made, which then had to be changed, it said.

"This led to the exercise being unclear and confusing for those attempting to engage with it."

The failure to include cabinet and ward councillors in the formation of the proposals "damaged confidence in the integrity of the exercise to a significant degree", the report said.

Councillors were not provided with specific details in relation to the proposals and there was "a lack of transparent and efficient communication" explaining why certain information was not shared, which "led to a perception that the council had an underlying agenda" and lacked evidence to support its position.

Even the council leader commented that officers were not very forthcoming when he asked questions in regular meetings, following a 'Save Scartho Nursery' public meeting on 29 June, the LDRS said.

The report recommended a review of the authority's constitution and training for senior councillors and council officers after Councillor Margaret Cracknell approved the consultation without fully understanding the nature of the exercise.

North East Lincolnshire Council said it was "committed to taking on the learning that comes from the contents of the report, and its findings and recommendations".

"Meanwhile, as has been reported, the three [nursery] settings remain open and the local authority is continuing to work pro-actively with all three settings - one day-care and two nurseries - on their business plans and sufficiency activity."

Ms Cracknell previously said it was the "strength and breadth of feedback" which led to the consultation being halted.

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