City of London Corporation members are expected to discuss the future funding of The Aldgate School’s provision on June 30
Parents are petitioning the City of London Corporation to continue subsidising childcare for those aged 0-2 at its only state primary school ahead of a crunch meeting later this month.
On June 30 Corporation members are expected to discuss whether to extend funding for the service at Outstanding-rated The Aldgate School beyond August 2027.
The Corporation agreed last year to continue supporting the provision until next summer. It is expected that without the Corporation’s subsidy the facility would have to close. The extension followed a campaign by parents concerned about changes to how children’s centre services are to be delivered across the Square Mile.
The plans involved ending the subsidy for The Aldgate School facility and instead running the service from locations across the City.
This was intended to be enacted in September 2025, though funding was first agreed to keep the school’s childcare provision going until August 2026 before it was again extended.
Parents described the continued support as a “positive first step” after it was confirmed at a Community and Children’s Services Committee meeting last June, though noted the “fundamental risk” of losing the provision remained.
The petition, which has several hundred signatures and counting, notes the school is in “the most deprived part of the City”, by the border with Tower Hamlets.
“The City has offered no proposals for an alternative facility,” it reads. “The annual subsidy, which the City has provided for the last 20 years, is only 0.058 per cent of the City’s £300,000,000 annual budget. As one of the wealthiest local authorities in the world, we know that they can easily afford this.”
The petition adds families will be left “with no affordable childcare options” if the subsidy is cut off, meaning “job losses for experienced, dedicated staff”.
“Without a credible replacement, closing this service will reduce childcare access, undermine support for working families, and narrow the City’s commitment to an inclusive community. Maintaining and strengthening The Aldgate School’s provision would better support the City’s stated goals of creating a thriving, diverse, and family-friendly community.”
Wayne Daly, one of the parents petitioning the Corporation to maintain the subsidy, told the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS): “The childcare setting at The Aldgate School has proven itself for over 20 years as a high quality, accessible provision, run by experienced, caring staff. It is the only affordable childcare facility in the Square Mile for many City of London residents and workers, and is based in the most deprived part of the City. We make major life decisions based on access to childcare.
“The City of London Corporation’s long-standing annual subsidy has allowed parents and carers to return to work. The facility in Aldgate is school-based, and the only early years setting in the City with its own contained, outdoor playground. Early years children benefit from the extensive school infrastructure and institutional organisation, and it encourages social mobility for children.”
Mr Daly noted a consultation last spring which showed overwhelming support for retaining the current provision, which he said “unambiguously proves the strength and consistency of feeling among families and carers”.
He added: “We do not want to be at odds with the Corporation – we love living in the City, it’s a fantastic part of London to raise a family. We hope that the committee sees sense and understands their responsibility to continue making affordable childcare accessible to working parents and carers, and prove to us that they support this diverse and family-friendly community at all levels.”
A City of London Corporation spokesperson said: “In June last year, members agreed a time limited package of support for 0–2 childcare at The Aldgate School, running until the end of August 2027. That timetable remains unchanged.
“This support was put in place to provide stability for families while the City Corporation and the school work together to explore financially viable options for the future. We are continuing to work collaboratively with school to examine costs and potential future models, and will keep families informed as this work progresses.
“There is sufficient, high quality, accessible childcare for all our families across the Square Mile and we are committed to supporting eligible families to access it through Government childcare entitlements and the City Corporation’s Childcare Accessibility Scheme.
“Families can also receive support through the Best Start in Life scheme, which brings together wider support for families with very young children, including advice, health services and early development support.”
The subsidy is expected to be discussed at a Community and Children’s Services Committee meeting on June 30.
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