Understanding Families' Motivations for Choosing Innovative ECEC in Barcelona, Spain: Comparing Social and Policy Innovation

Abstract

Social innovation in early childhood education and care (ECEC) in the city of Barcelona has emerged from two different sources. On the one hand, from citizens' initiatives that have developed over the past 20 years, including childminders, care groups, and free-education nurseries. On the other hand, from the local council, which has put together a network of municipal ‘family spaces’ as part of its 0–3 policy. Over the past decade, family spaces have had a scant presence and a complementary aim in relation to the municipal nurseries network, but ever since the approval of the municipal ECEC Plan in April 2021, they have become one of the pillars of an innovative local policy in which an intensified effort has been made to expand them and redefine them to construct a new model. This is a case of policy learning where the local council has incorporated features of citizen-led social innovation into a new type of municipal ECEC services. Both strands of social innovations are alternatives to school-like environments and share aspects that address pedagogical models, the balance of care and education, and approaches to parenting. However, they differ in their definition of social innovation, the needs they respond to, the costs for families, and therefore, the public they aim to serve. This chapter explores and compares the motivations of families who opt for citizen-led social innovation in ECEC and those of families who opt for institution-led social innovation, to identify the challenges faced by each model. The empirical data used to elaborate this chapter comes from 56 interviews and 4 direct observations.

Citation

Gallego, R. and Saula, E.S. (2024), "Understanding Families' Motivations for Choosing Innovative ECEC in Barcelona, Spain: Comparing Social and Policy Innovation", Gallego, R., Motos, S.G. and Maestripieri, L. (Ed.) Social Innovation and Welfare State Retrenchment, Emerald Publishing Limited, Leeds, pp. 95-115. https://doi.org/10.1108/978-1-83753-928-420241013