The Maudsley Hospital, Denmark Hill, is described as the “heart” of South London and Maudsley NHS Trust (SLAM), and shares its nursery sites with King’s College London Hospital (KCH). Staff from the Maudsley and Kings’ College Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience create one of the largest concentrations of scientists and clinicians in Europe, working in mental health. KCH is one of London’s largest and busiest teaching hospitals, providing a strong profile of local hospital services for people living in the boroughs of Lambeth, Southwark and Lewisham. KCH also provides nationally and internationally recognised treatment and care in liver disease and transplantation, neurosciences, haemato-oncology, and fetal medicine.
Yet, executives at both NHS Foundation Trusts have announced, with no consultation or warning and despite repeated assurances, that they will close the two staff nurseries at Mapother House, it’s crucial childcare facility, with no plans for replacement childcare provision.
The decision not only puts health services at risk, and undermines both Trusts’ stated commitment to workplace equality for staff who are parents, but reveals a dismissive attitude to their long-standing experienced early years staff, some of whom have served the NHS for over twenty years. Nursery staff are facing a speedy consultation and the suggestion that instead of being offered proper redundancy, they may be re-deployed into other non-clinical roles across the Trust which do not value their knowledge and skills as early years practitioners.
Mapother House at Maudsley Hospital holds both the King’s College Hospital Day Nursery and SLAM’s Cedar House Day Nursery. The nurseries are staffed by highly skilled, compassionate and dedicated early years practitioners. They have provided specialised, experienced, affordable and quality care to NHS key workers for decades.
Parents and carers have raised that in the absence of this vital workplace provision, they may have to stop working and stay at home, or look for jobs elsewhere, with potential serious implications for patient safety and standards of care.
Further details:
· Parents and carers – including those of children with additional support needs (SEND) – have been given only six months to find new nursery places for their children.
· Around 120 full time places will be lost if the closures go ahead.
· Typical waiting lists for private nursery places in the area extend beyond a year, and there is a lack of alternative accessible provision.
· Both Trusts are already struggling to recruit and retain staff and this decision is likely to exacerbate this problem.
· SLAM (South London and Maudsley NHS Trust) has recognised that closing the nursery will add to already high agency staff costs as it will reduce the incentive and affordability for staff to remain working for the Trust meaning that they will leave.
· Being open for unusually long hours, Mapother House is the only local early childcare and education facility in the area able to support NHS staff who work long shifts.
The decision was announced by SLAM’s Head of HR at a closed meeting on 15th August 2024, blind-siding parents who had believed the Trust’s repeated commitments to provide a 120 place childcare provision together at another location onsite while Mapother House is re-developed as part of a £186 million investment “to provide modern, safe, and therapeutic environments for people who use our services, and for staff to work in.”
Parents explain that at a subsequent follow-up meeting, senior executives from both Trusts admitted there had been no consultation with parents or nursery staff and suggested the decision was based on the rationale that both Trusts are under pressure to reduce their extensive deficits, and the childcare (which is offered to all staff) is “not cost neutral” and “not a universal benefit”.
NHS key staff have been left wondering what kind of ‘modernisation’ process neglects childcare infrastructure, and what other services Maudsley and Kings consider to not be ‘universal’ – perhaps Maternity wards will be next?
Support the parents campaign against these closures and sign the petition https://www.change.org/p/keep-affordable-high-quality-nursery-provisions-open-for-nhs-staff-in-south-london
Follow the campaign on X: @saveNHS_nursery
Kommentarer