
Grasshoppers in the Park
Parents leading the service in Grasshoppers in the Park
Sevice Area:
childcare
Sevice Area:
childcare
Background
In London there is growing demand for limited numbers of childcare places and great unevenness in service quality, although these challenges are not unique to the capital. Without adequate government intervention, service quality and availability have largely declined under the predominant private, profit-led model.
Staffing is central to the crisis. Due to poor working conditions, low pay and limited potential for career development, providers struggle with recruitment and retention. Without enough staff it’s harder to meet the demand for places, especially in highly populated cities such as London. Functioning as a negative feedback loop, understaffed, overstretched services exacerbate poor working conditions, so childcare roles grow increasingly unappealing. As a result, many more children are denied access to high-quality early education before starting primary school.
Local Action
In the early 2000s a group of frustrated parents informally set up Grasshoppers in the Park (GH) in response to the scarcity of formal childcare places. They started out sharing caring responsibilities in their homes, before locating premises in the London Borough of Hackney and registering with Ofsted. A communal ethos on early education pushed them to formalise and expand the service. As an alternative to the highly priced private chains dominating the sector, the East London nursery continues to provide parent-led, affordable childcare.
GH’s model is unique as parents are supported to take on a role within the nursery. Involvement spans teaching and the provision of care, to taking on operational and administrative duties, such as accounting, fundraising or laundry. Parental input in any capacity is encouraged, with GH providing training where necessary. This approach lowers fees and brings about the benefits of co-production. There is continuing dialogue with all families using the service, whether or not they play a direct role in the nursery. A monthly meeting takes place, open to all staff and parents to discuss issues and progress. The onsite garden was co-designed with parents.
GH takes an interdisciplinary approach to understanding early childhood, developing a rounded early education programme. It creates contexts in which children can explore and represent their ideas and thinking through their ‘hundred languages’, building on the Reggio Emilia pedagogical approach, so that play, creativity, role-play, drama, music, literacy and the outdoor environment are all key components.
Impact on local residents
GH’s structure is designed for affordability and accessibility. Fees are already set according to income, while parents who put in a regular day in the classroom get an additional monthly discount. Parental participation cuts the risk of the service suffering from staffing shortfalls.
The model prioritises the children’s needs and fosters a strong sense of community. It demonstrates the benefit of early education to young children as well as to parents and the wider economy. Crucially, the provision of high-quality early education can close attainment gaps, acting as a counterweight against socio-economic inequalities. At GH, the child-centred approach specifically promotes wellbeing and emotional and educational development via parental participation and a rounded, child-centred curriculum.
GH recognises the worth of investing in staff: salaries are above average in the sector and reviewed regularly to keep up with inflation.
Environmental Impact
Caring for the environment is widely encouraged at the nursery. Pollution, recycling and the planet prominently feature in the curriculum. Based on Scandinavian models, GH also runs a forest school programme, entailing regular trips to natural green spaces. They plant bulbs and seeds in the local area and pick up litter during walks in the park.
What's next?
Parental involvement is keenly appreciated at GH but is not seen as a long-term solution to the staffing crisis, which really needs a skilled, valued workforce to be developed across the country. Nonetheless, there’s much to learn from GH’s co-produced model, which puts families’ needs – both children’s and parents’ – at the heart of the service.