Childcare Voices

Episode 3 of Nursery Workers Bite Back picks up the story of the Islington Nursery Strike. What did the nursery workers achieve after fifteen long weeks of strike action? How did the strike affect the parents, children and workers? Presented by an Islington playworker experiencing funding cuts today, this episode looks at what happened next, how childcare has changed since the 1980s and what lesso...

Episode 2 of Nursery Workers Bite Back details the dramatic events that took place during the Islington Nursery Strike of 1984. Discover what happened when parents and toddlers took over Islington Town Hall, how the strikers made a splash at the opening of a swimming pool and how they connected with the miners strike. Presented by a nursery worker with recent experience of going on strike, episode...

On Monday 16 April 1984 155 nursery workers employed by Islington Council began an indefinite strike. Their industrial action was sparked by understaffing in the nurseries, which meant there was often an unsafe ratio of children to staff. The strike lasted fifteen weeks, during which time all twelve council-run Children’s Day Centres were closed. The strikers returned to work on 30 July 1984, havi...

Childcare Voices is back with a second series out on 16 April! Nursery Workers Bite Back tells the story of the Islington Nursery Strike (1984). Made by a group of childcare workers, parents, carers and activists, discover the history of this important but little known strike of nursery workers who fought for better conditions for both workers and the children in their care. Hosted on Acast. See a...

The term au pair means 'on equal terms.' Raquel Camarasa asks, how often is that really the case, really, for young migrant women who come to live with families as au pairs today? First Raquel hears about the Ayahs home in Hackney. The home provided accommodation for Indian Ayahs and Chinese Amahs, who were nannies that cared for the children of British colonial families on the long voyages betwee...

In episode 7 of Childcare Voices, Aga asks 'Who Cares for the Youths?' and looks at what kind of 'childcare' is needed when children are older. Aga is mum to two active teenage boys, who love trips and baking, but she says it is hard to find creative activities for them to do, especially during the school holidays. Aga finds that youth services have suffered devastating cuts in the last decade. Sh...

In this episode, Mona Adam wants to know more about what it is like to work in nurseries. As a councillor in the London borough of Kensington and Chelsea she has visited nurseries and enjoyed spending time with the staff and children there. While the nurseries seemed like happy places, she wonders if there are hidden challenges she is unaware of in this demanding, but essential, job? Mona investig...

In this episode, Imran Bukenya, stay-at-home dad and community organiser with Together in Unity, talks about what it means to have ‘no recourse to public funds’ and need childcare. Imran asks if previous generations of migrants to the UK faced the same challenges? He investigates the archives to find out how people campaigned to create childcare accessible to all in the past, and calls on the gove...

In this episode, Adeola Osunbade looks at the isolation faced by families with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND). Adeola is a mum to three including a young person with special abilities and runs a hub in Newham, East London, called 'Space for Me' for families, children and young people with special needs and disabilities. Lack of suitable childcare meant Adeola had to change her c...

Can you be a working mum and breastfeed? In this episode, mum and breastfeding peer supporter Genova, investigates how breastfeeding parents have negotiated their return to work. She delves into the archives to find out what breastfeeding was like in the 1950s. She speaks to campaigners and experts to find out what rights parents returning to work have today. You can sign a petition to create new...

How are single parents affected by the lack of affordable childcare? In this episode Ruth Talbot, single parent to 3 children and founder of the campaign group Single Parent Rights, explores the history of the issues she faces. Has anything changed for single parents in the last six decades? How will the planned changes to Universal Credit for single parents announced in the 2023 Spring Budget imp...

In this episode, Eva, a single mum, artist and designer talks about stay and plays. Stay and Plays are often volunteer-run groups, found in church halls. They are places people looking after very young babies and children can go, to play with others, have a cup of tea and a chat, and maybe even make friends. An experienced play facilitator herself, Eva first discovered the value of stay and p...

Our first episode is out on Wednesday September 20th! Subscribe now to make sure you don't miss it. People on the frontline of the childcare crisis share their stories and investigate the historical roots of the problems they face. As they look into the past, will they find solutions to the problems of today?  Hear from campaigners for single parents' rights, migrants with no recourse to publ...