Critical situation for childcare in our region - The problem of childcare is a problem only too familiar to many families here in our region and today it’s been highlighted by a UFC-Que Choisir. Their recent survey shows that the Alpes Maritimes and the Var have a record shortage of nursery places and childminders and are among the worst departments in France. One out of two children (0 to 3 years old) cannot be looked after in the Alpes-Maritimes and the Var. On the Côte d'Azur, one child out of two does not have a place in a crèche or with an approved childminder. With respectively 49.8 and 49.4 places per 100 children, both departments are well below the national average (58.8 places per 100 children) and find themselves relegated to 87th and 89th in the ranking of French departments far behind the Mayenne or the Vendée, which offer a childcare solution to more than 80% of their youngest citizens.
The UFC-Que Choisir study reveals that there is great disparity between departments in terms of childcare. If the Alpes-Maritimes and the Var have half as many nursery places as Paris, these two departments are nevertheless among the best equipped (9th and 14th ranks) in collective reception structures.
For childminders the Alpes-Maritimes has "lost" 495 childminders in the space of 4 years between 2016 and 2020. A trend which is not likely to be reversed according to UFC-Que Choisir, which says that by 2030, 240,000 early childhood staff will retire.
Looking after children under 3 years old is likely to remain a headache for families on the Riviera and the Var. According to the UFC study, “37% of parents who have decided to take care of their children themselves actually do so by default”. The UFC-Que Choisir has therefore advocated the creation of an enforceable right to child custody, as there is in terms of housing. So that no parent is left without a solution. A measure announced in 2007 and systematically taken up by successive Presidents of the Republic, from Nicolas Sarkozy to Emmanuel Macron, via François Hollande but, which has always remained wishful thinking.
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