Calendar An icon of a desk calendar. Cancel An icon of a circle with a diagonal line across. Caret An icon of a block arrow pointing to the right. Email An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of the Facebook "f" mark. Google An icon of the Google "G" mark. Linked In An icon of the Linked In "in" mark. Logout An icon representing logout. Profile An icon that resembles human head and shoulders. Telephone An icon of a traditional telephone receiver. Tick An icon of a tick mark. Is Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes. Is Not Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes with a diagonal line through it. Pause Icon A two-lined pause icon for stopping interactions. Quote Mark A opening quote mark. Quote Mark A closing quote mark. Arrow An icon of an arrow. Folder An icon of a paper folder. Breaking An icon of an exclamation mark on a circular background. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Caret An icon of a caret arrow. Clock An icon of a clock face. Close An icon of the an X shape. Close Icon An icon used to represent where to interact to collapse or dismiss a component Comment An icon of a speech bubble. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Ellipsis An icon of 3 horizontal dots. Envelope An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Home An icon of a house. Instagram An icon of the Instagram logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. Magnifying Glass An icon of a magnifying glass. Search Icon A magnifying glass icon that is used to represent the function of searching. Menu An icon of 3 horizontal lines. Hamburger Menu Icon An icon used to represent a collapsed menu. Next An icon of an arrow pointing to the right. Notice An explanation mark centred inside a circle. Previous An icon of an arrow pointing to the left. Rating An icon of a star. Tag An icon of a tag. Twitter An icon of the Twitter logo. Video Camera An icon of a video camera shape. Speech Bubble Icon A icon displaying a speech bubble WhatsApp An icon of the WhatsApp logo. Information An icon of an information logo. Plus A mathematical 'plus' symbol. Duration An icon indicating Time. Success Tick An icon of a green tick. Success Tick Timeout An icon of a greyed out success tick. Loading Spinner An icon of a loading spinner. Facebook Messenger An icon of the facebook messenger app logo. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Facebook Messenger An icon of the Twitter app logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. WhatsApp Messenger An icon of the Whatsapp messenger app logo. Email An icon of an mail envelope. Copy link A decentered black square over a white square.

North-east mums launch petition to save playgroup funding

Banff Playgroup and Toddlers chairwoman Nicki Payne with son Lachlan, and Vice Chair Jillian McBain, with daughter Emmy
Banff Playgroup and Toddlers chairwoman Nicki Payne with son Lachlan, and Vice Chair Jillian McBain, with daughter Emmy

Parents desperate to preserve vital funding to keep their children’s playgroups running have launched a petition calling for cuts to be abandoned.

Aberdeenshire Council confirmed this week that it will be axing its funding for Early Years Scotland (EYS) support workers in June, meaning that groups across the north-east could struggle to continue operating.

The EYS staff help with ensuring that childcare is kept up to standards and process legal documents for the groups.

One group, the Banff Playgroup and Toddlers, has said the change will make it “tough” for them going forward.

Nicki Payne, its chairwoman, has now launched a petition, alongside other parents, calling for the council to change its mind.

About 50 other groups will be affected by the change.

Asking people to sign the petition, Mrs Payne said: “The council has informed groups across Aberdeenshire that they will no longer fund Early Years Scotland to provide us with the support we need.

“We hope signatures will help impact on how important committees need to be assisted – for the long term future of groups across Aberdeenshire.”

Since launching the document on Tuesday evening, more than 200 people have signed.

One signatory, Olly Black, said the cut to EYS provision is “not the type of decision I pay my taxes for”.

Another, Katrina Macdonald, added: “As a previous committee member, this service was invaluable to us.

“Most of us had no previous experience and the members of this team helped with many aspects of the paperwork and running for the group.”

A spokesman for the council said changes to early years education and the need to balance its budget forced the rethink on EYS funding.

“We are looking at ways of supporting our early years provision by ensuring there are no gaps or overlaps within the service offered,” he added.

To sign the petition, visit www.ipetitions.com/petition/keep-our-vital-support-system-funding-in-place-2.