3. Early Years Capacity Review - Cabinet (Education) - 27 January 2026
North Ayrshire Council · 27 January 2026
Back to Cabinet — 27 January 2026 and its agenda
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NORTH AYRSHIRE COUNCIL 27 January 2026 Cabinet (Education) Title: Early Years Capacity Review Purpose: To provide a summary of the Early Years Capacity Review and to outline actions to ensure that North Ayrshire’s Early Years service provision remains aligned to local needs. Recommendation: It is recommended Cabinet: • approves the proposal to change Elderbank Early Years from a model 3 to model 2 provision from August 2026 • agrees to give the Education Head of Service ongoing delegated authority to make operational changes in line with capacity versus demand reviews of Early Learning and Childcare provision 1. Executive Summary 1.1 The Early Years Capacity Review highlights the ongoing efforts to align North Ayrshire’s Early Learning and Childcare provision with local needs. While some operational adjustments have already been made to ensure efficient use of existing resources, the review identifies a clear requirement to adjust capacities in the longer term, particularly in the Irvine locality, to meet rising demand. By proactively addressing these challenges through both immediate changes and forward planning, the Council aims to provide high-quality, accessible childcare that supports families. 1.2 A key proposal in this paper is to change Elderbank Early Years from a model 3 (9am– 3pm, term time) to a model 2 (8am–6pm, term time) establishment from session 2026- 27. This change is designed to address ongoing capacity and demand pressures in the Irvine East locality, offering 12 additional places for 3–5-year-olds and increasing parental choice of attendance patterns. The proposal follows engagement with parents and staff, recognising both the need for expanded provision and the importance of supporting families’ preferences. 2. Background 2.1 Early Learning and Childcare Provision 2.1.1 The Scottish Government introduced a policy to increase funded ELC for eligible children from 600 hours per year to 1140 hours per year from August 2020. North Ayrshire Council phased in this programme with full implementation of 1140 hours of
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funded early learning and childcare for all eligible children from August 2021. There was a delay in full implementation due to the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic. 2.1.2 In line with the national picture, the uptake of children’s ELC places in North Ayrshire was lower than originally estimated, following initial implementation. This led to a national decision to reduce the funding available to local authorities including North Ayrshire. As a result of this decision, a significant review of early learning and childcare service delivery was undertaken in session 2023-24. Cabinet approved a wide-ranging service redesign in February 2024, for implementation from session 2024-25 onwards. 2.1.3 Since implementation of the new early learning and childcare service delivery models in 2024, the Education Service has monitored both capacity and demand on an annual basis to ensure that our provisions continue to be well-matched to the local circumstances and offer a range of different options for families within each locality. To date, some minor operational adjustments have been made to a limited number of establishments without amending the service delivery models. This is increasing the efficiency and responsiveness of our service provision. 2.2 NAC ELC delivery models 2.2.1 Funded ELC is delivered by North Ayrshire Council alongside our funded providers, private nurseries and childminders. The three delivery models operating within North Ayrshire schools and ELC centres since 2024 are outlined in the table below. There are no plans to alter the models themselves. Model Service Provided No. of weeks Number of Establishments 1 8am – 6pm 48 (Full Year) 9 2 8am – 6pm 38 (Term Time) 13 3 9am – 3pm 38 (Term Time) 22 2.2.2 There are no catchment areas prescribed within the Scottish Government ELC guidance, Funding Follows the Child. Parents and carers in North Ayrshire are asked to list their choice of 3 establishments on their online application. The range of North Ayrshire Council model options available to parents and carers is available at establishment level at Appendix 1, and is summarised below on a locality basis: Locality Model 1 Model 2 Model 3 Kilwinning 2 2 1 Irvine 2 4 6 Three Towns 2 4 5 Garnock Valley 1 2 3 North Coast 1 1 2 Arran 1 0 5 Totals 9 13 22
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2.2.3 By introducing more flexible attendance patterns in model 2 establishments and making some operational adjustments to the number of spaces available in some locations, in 2025 we have: • successfully increased the percentage of applications being allocated their first choice of establishment from 65.49% in 2024 to 80.67% in 2025; and also • reduced by 55.15% the number of names on our waiting lists for a move to a preferred establishment. 2.3 Increasing early years capacity in the Irvine locality 2.3.1 The graph below outlines Public Health data for birth rates showing that while there will be a slight decrease in demand for early years places across North Ayrshire over the next few years, demand is likely to increase in the Irvine and Kilwinning areas. 2.3.2 The current capacity review has shown that while many early years provisions are already a good fit for the area and are operating well, the demand for ELC places has not been evenly distributed across the service. An analysis of capacity versus demand this year highlighted that Irvine East has limited capacity and most establishments have waiting lists for the second year in a row. These are outlined below. Establishment Model Maximum Capacity Current Numbers Waiting List Elderbank 3 48 48 Yes Dreghorn 3 40 40 Yes Springside 3 16 16 Yes Lawthorn 3 32 32 Yes St John Ogilvie’s 2 50 50 Yes St Mark’s 3 16 16 Yes Annick 2 60 60 Yes Montgomerie Park 2 70 68 No Woodlands 2 80 75 No 0 50 100 150 200 250 300 350 400 450 500 Born 2021-22 Born 2022-23 Born 2023-24 Born 2024-25 Births in NAC Localities 2021-25 Irvine Kilwinning Garnock Valley Three Towns North Coast Arran
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2.3.3 Within the area of Springside, Dreghorn and Bourtreehill / Broomlands, all establishments currently deliver a term time, 9am-3pm model. The demand for ELC spaces currently outweighs the capacity and there is a reduced choice of pattern within this locality for families. 2.3.4 Given the current and projected future pressure on early learning and childcare places in the Irvine area in particular, the Education Service made some operational adjustments to service provision in Irvine in 2025-26. An analysis of the supply of 2- year-old places in Irvine identified some surplus capacity in 2025-26. Temporary increases were made to the 3-5-year-old capacities in both Loudoun Montgomery and Montgomerie Park by reducing the availability of 2-year-old places in both establishments. There have been no applications for 2-year-olds in Montgomerie Park this session or last session. All 2-year-olds in session 2025-26 within the Fullarton area of Irvine have been accommodated within Marress House. Birth data shows that we can continue to do this in future years. It would therefore be the intention of the service to make these changes permanent to increase capacity for 3-5-year-olds in Irvine. 2.3.5 From session 2026-27, it is proposed that Elderbank ELC provision changes from a model 3 (9.00am – 3.00pm term time) to a model 2 (8.00am – 6.00pm term time) to address further capacity and demand pressures on a long-term basis within the Irvine East locality. This change would offer 12 additional places for 3–5-year-olds from 2026-27 with scope for further expansion in future years if required, through the supply of additional staffing. 2.3.6 Changing Elderbank to a model 2 establishment would increase parental choice of model and patterns within the Irvine East locality and more specifically the areas of Springside, Dreghorn, Bourtreehill and Broomlands. The 8.00am – 6.00pm term time model will support a broader range of family circumstances, including working families, at the start and end of the day. At present we only offer 9.00am – 3.00pm term time in this area. 2.3.7 Our ongoing work through the Collaboration for Health Equity in Scotland has a focus on both providing every child with the best start in life (Principle 1) and creating fair employment and good work for all (Principle 3). The first of these has a particular focus on the Irvine area. Our objective within this proposal to expand early years capacity while also broadening parental choice to match different employment patterns will support those wider ambitions. 2.4 Engagement with parents and carers 2.4.1 It is acknowledged that any proposed changes to early years delivery models need to be clearly communicated and shaped through engagement with various stakeholders. Engagement with parents and carers was carried out at Elderbank Primary School and Early Years as the proposal for this particular establishment would affect the attendance patterns offered to the current 3-year-olds (13 children) and future children in session 2026-27 and beyond. It is recognised that Elderbank had a previous capacity of 72 with very few spaces. The model change in 2024 decreased this to 48 resulting in a waiting list over the last 2 sessions. An engagement session was held in the school in December 2025 outlining the proposals and written views were gathered following this. Six responses were received from parents of children who currently attend Elderbank Early Years.
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2.4.2 All responses received were from parents whose child currently attends Elderbank Early Years as an ante preschool child (approximately 3 years old). The engagement findings below highlight a small number of families who have expressed that they will be negatively impacted by this change. • 4 parents agreed that the change would improve capacity within the Irvine east area with 2 parents disagreeing. • 3 parents said they would prefer to keep their child in Elderbank within a 9-3 pattern and provided some further comments to explain their reasons. They did not choose an alternative 9-3 establishment or state that they would want the new patterns that would be offered within Elderbank. • 1 parent said they would choose Dreghorn as an alternative 9-3 establishment for next session. • 2 parents did not provide their preference for next session if the changes take place. 2.4.3 Apart from the proposed changes to Elderbank, no significant changes are proposed. Therefore, no engagement has been undertaken within localities where minor operational changes to the supply of early years places could improve provision and would not negatively impact on parental choice. 2.5 Engagement with ELC staff and leadership teams 2.5.1 It is recognised that North Ayrshire Council’s ELC staff and establishment leadership teams play an important role in ensuring the effective delivery of high quality ELC in North Ayrshire. Because of the proposed change of model at Elderbank, a staff engagement session was held in December 2025. No staff members raised any objection to the proposed pattern change. 2.5.2 Elderbank ELC staff also highlighted the particularly high levels of additional support needs within their establishment. In the 2024-25 academic year, 18% of all young people in North Ayrshire early years establishments were identified as having additional support needs. This figure was 27% in Elderbank. In the current year, 39% of the children at Elderbank early years are recorded as having additional support needs. Staff reported that a change to model 2 would provide further opportunities to tailor support to the children’s needs. 2.5.3 The Head Teacher has made multiple submissions to the Early Years Inclusion group and this session they have been allocated two additional temporary full-time members of staff to provide support to meet the needs of the young people. 2.6 Summary of operational changes to early years provisions from 2026-27 2.6.1 The table below summarises the operational changes to the capacity of establishments for 3-5 year olds. Locality Establishment Model Current Capacity Proposed Capacity Decrease Increase Irvine Montgomerie Park (3-5) 2 50 60 Yes
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Loudoun Montgomery (3-5) 3 32 40 Yes Three Towns Stanley 2 60 65 Yes North Coast Largs 1 120 112 Yes 3. Proposals 3.1 As outlined above at 2.3.5, it is proposed that Elderbank Early Years becomes a model 2 from August 2026. 3.1.1 In recognition of the views expressed so far by parents and carers at Elderbank, it is proposed that further engagement takes place with families of children already attending Elderbank Early Years who will be going into their pre-school year in 2026- 27. This will enable arrangements to be made for those families. Options would include: • staying at Elderbank with the range of model 2 attendance patterns • moving to an alternative establishment for 2026-27 to retain the same 9am-3pm attendance pattern 3.1.2 In terms of a transition year for 2026-27 only, it may be possible to offer up to 8 places at Elderbank Early Years for existing families to continue to attend from 9am-3pm. The recently updated early years priority banding arrangements would be used to allocate the available places if demand exceeds capacity. Elderbank would effectively be operating with a hybrid of model 2 and model 3 for a transition year. 3.1.3 Any new applications to Elderbank Early Years from now on would be processed as model 2 applications. 3.2 It is proposed that the ongoing authority and responsibility to monitor future early years capacity and demand and make any necessary operational adjustments be delegated to the Head of Service (Education), with the understanding that any significant service redesign proposals would be presented to Cabinet for approval.
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4. Implications/Socio-economic Duty Financial 4.1 The costs associated with these proposals can be met from within the existing Early Learning and Childcare budget. Human Resources 4.2 Any workforce implications of proposals outlined in this paper will be supported be Human Resources and Education Resources teams. Legal 4.3 The Children and Young People (Scotland) Act 2014 (Modification) Order 2021 places a statutory duty on education authorities to make provision for 1,140 hours of funded ELC available to all children aged 3-5, and eligible 2-year-olds. The proposals outlined in this paper enable the local authority to more effectively and efficiently deliver on this to provide full access to 1140 to parents and carers and better meet the needs of North Ayrshire families. Equality/Socio-economic 4.4 Proposals contained in this paper will impact the provision of ELC across North Ayrshire with a potential impact on learners residing in North Ayrshire’s areas of highest deprivation. Some of the proposed changes are anticipated to be positive due to the proposed redesign of the service based on patterns of uptake. Regular reviews that currently take place to ensure that ELC capacity and demand are as closely aligned as possible will continue. An Equality and Children’s Rights Impact Assessment (ECRIA) for ELC has been carried out to inform implementation. Climate Change and Carbon 4.5 The revised ELC models provide a range of options to access ELC across each locality, continuing to mitigate where possible the requirement of parents/carers to travel outwith their locality area to access ELC. Key Priorities 4.6 Proposals outlined in this report support the Council Plan 2023-28 strategic aim to “transition to a wellbeing economy, delivering prosperity, wellbeing and resilience for local people” and more specifically “improving educational attainment and achievement and closing the attainment gap” activities. Community Wealth Building 4.7 North Ayrshire’s Education Service works closely with a range of funded providers (private nurseries and childminders) to deliver 1140 through procurement of local services. Implementation of this proposal will also continue to support community wealth building through support for parental employment.
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United Nations Rights of the Child (UNCRC) 4.9 Proposals outlined in this report ensure we are considering children’s by improving access, flexibility, and inclusion within localities and specific establishments. These changes embed align with UNCRC principles, promoting the right to relax and play and receive an education through high quality learning experiences. 5. Consultation 5.1 Engagement on the proposal for Elderbank has taken place with staff and parents. Andrew McClelland Head of Service (Education) and Chief Education Officer For further information please contact Sharon McDowell, Senior Manager (Education), on 01294 324413 . Background Papers Cabinet Report - Early Learning & Childcare - Redesign of Service
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APPENDIX 1 ELC Delivery Models and capacity versus demand in NAC schools and ELC settings 2024-25 and 2025-26: Locality Establishment Model 2024-25 2025-2026 Capacity Spaces Waiting list Capacity Spaces Waiting list Kilwinning Abbey 2 60 Yes No 60 Yes No Blacklands 3 16 No Yes 16 No Yes Corsehill 2 80 Yes No 64 Yes No Pennyburn 2 60 Yes No 60 No Yes St Luke’s 2 64 Yes No 64 No Yes Irvine Annick 2 60 No Yes 60 No Yes Castlepark 1 112 Yes No 112 Yes No Loudoun Montgomery 2 32 No Yes 47 Yes No St Mark’s 3 16 No Yes 16 No Yes Marress 1 80 Yes No 80 Yes No Montgomerie Park 2 50 No No 70 Yes No St John Ogilvie’s 2 50 Yes No 50 No Yes Woodlands 2 80 Yes No 80 Yes No Dreghorn 3 40 No Yes 40 No Yes Elderbank 3 48 No Yes 48 No Yes Lawthorn 3 32 No Yes 32 No Yes Springside 3 16 No Yes 16 No Yes Three Towns Mayfield 3 24 No Yes 24 No Yes Glencairn 1 86 No No 86 Yes No Hayocks 2 50 No No 50 Yes No Ardeer 3 30 No Yes 30 No Yes St John’s 3 16 No No 16 Yes No Caledonia 2 50 No Yes 50 No Yes Springvale 1 120 No Yes 120 Yes No St Peter’s 3 24 No Yes 24 No Yes Stanley 2 60 No Yes 60 No Yes West Kilbride 3 24 No No 24 Yes No Winton 2 20 No Yes 20 No Yes Caledonia 2 50 No Yes 50 No Yes Garnock Valley Beith 2 80 Yes No 80 Yes No Dalry 1 80 Yes No 80 Yes No Garnock 3 24 No Yes 32 Yes No Gateside 3 16 No Yes 16 No Yes Moorpark 3 16 No Yes 16 No Yes St Bridget’s 2 60 Yes No 60 No Yes North Coast Cumbrae 3 16 Yes No 16 Yes No Fairlie 2 40 Yes No 40 Yes No Largs 1 128 Yes No 120 Yes No Skelmorlie 3 16 Yes No 16 Yes No Arran Brodick 3 21 Yes No 21 No Yes Kilmory 3 10 No Yes 10 Yes No Lamlash 1 32 Yes No 32 Yes No Shiskine 3 16 Yes No 16 Yes No