Iain Dalton, Leeds Socialist Party and Save Little Owls Nurseries campaign
Parents and carers in the campaign are celebrating. Now ten nurseries will stay with the council, out of the 12 the Labour council originally tried to privatise.
Through campaigning and lobbying, over the last year and a half, parents and carers, and our supporters in the trade unions, have pressured the council.
We see the future for the two nurseries that Labour is still privatising. The intended operators of Shepherd’s Lane Little Owls nursery announced a whopping 24% price hike.
I was interviewed on behalf of the campaign in the local newspaper, radio and regional TV. As the campaign continues to point out, Leeds Labour councillors have always had a choice.
They can either continue to privatise, with a detrimental effect on parents, carers, and their children. Or, instead, they can work with us, and the trade unions representing nursery workers, to campaign to demand the funds necessary from central government to ensure high-quality, affordable nursery provision.
