Tag Archives: early years

New Government, Same Challenges: Why the early years sector needs to engage with Labour

GK Adviser Noureen Ahmed considers Labour’s approach to the early years sector and why it is so important for providers to engage with the government.

Earlier this month, the Prime Minister Keir Starmer outlined his ‘Plan for Change’ in which he set out the six metrics he would like to hit by the next election. This was an important moment for Starmer to demonstrate to voters that his government means business after a turbulent five months in office. Starmer’s education metric, to ensure 75 per cent of five-year-olds are school-ready, falls under the government’s mission to break down the barriers to opportunity. This is one of five missions Starmer set out prior to the election in which he promised to bolster opportunity for all through improvements to the education system.

Early years education has long been a priority for Labour, with Starmer’s education team having been incredibly vocal about the sector in opposition. Even though much of the initial focus has been on delivering the previous government’s early years reforms, notably the rollout of the extended childcare entitlement, the new government is clearly preparing the sector ahead of launching its own early years agenda, as laid out in Labour’s general election manifesto.

Whilst the spotlight on the sector has been welcomed, some immediate concerns have been expressed by sector leaders, including: whether the government’s schedule to roll out the final stage of its extended childcare entitlement to up to 30 hours go ahead as planned in September 2025, and if the government can deliver its additional pledges for the early years sector successfully over the course of this parliament.

The recruitment and retention crisis facing the early years sector is the biggest barrier impacting the delivery of the extended childcare entitlement. Difficulties attracting people to work in the early years sector, coupled with an exodus of staff, means it is unsurprising early years professionals are sceptical about whether the final rollout will go ahead as planned. The Department for Education’s (DfE’s) recent announcement that it will provide £75 million in grant funding to help childcare providers deliver the staff and places needed next year is positive and suggests that the government is determined to launch the final stage on time, despite these challenges.

There was also some welcome news at the October budget with the government announcing £15 million in investment to begin the delivery of 3,000 school-based nurseries by the end of this parliament. Schools currently have the opportunity to bid for up to £150,000 to either expand existing nurseries or open a new one, with the government hoping to open around 300 new or expanded nurseries by September 2025.

Education secretary Bridget Phillipson has reiterated government’s appetite to deliver more school-based nursery provision. Making use of unused classrooms in primary schools looks like a sensible policy approach. However, the government could find it difficult to meet the commitment’s short- and long-term targets. Getting enough schools on board with the scheme could prove difficult. Even though there may be capacity to utilise the free classroom spaces available, the infrastructure (both physical and logistical) needed to create and maintain nursery provision is very different to those needed for primary school pupils.

The Labour government is also realistic about the need for a model which includes both state-delivered provision via in-school nurseries and maintained nurseries and provision by the private voluntary and independent (PVI) sector in order to meet capacity demands. In regard to the latter, the government understands the importance of the PVI sector in delivering high-quality early years education and so will be keen to work with the sector to deliver much of its proposed in-school nursery provision.

Moreover, Ofsted has said it will work to support the government’s plans by making it easier for high-quality providers to set up and expand nurseries. The watchdog’s plan to streamline the registration process for providers as well review how it inspects and regulates multiple providers is laudable because it allows the sector the chance to continue meeting the demand for early years settings.

The government has made a big play that in total will see investment increase by over 30% compared to last year, all whilst happening amidst a bleak fiscal outlook. This political priority as the education secretary has acknowledged must be accompanied by reform to deliver a sustainable early education system. This will mean high quality providers demonstrating value for money and their ability to scale up provision. Those providers with a proven track record and an ambition for growth will find a receptive ear within DfE and No 10. With the next phase of rollout in 2025 and the comprehensive spending review in the spring setting out the funding for the remainder of this parliament, providers have no time to waste. They should prioritise engaging with government to position themselves as a partner in the next phase of reform, and to demonstrate the role they play in ensuring a successful delivery.

The Early Years Conundrum

GK Point of View – The Early Years Conundrum

GK Adviser Felix Griffin assesses the potential battle lines between Labour and the Conservatives in the early years sector ahead of the General Election. 

A Political Football in the Education Arena 

In the ever-evolving education landscape, early years policy has found itself thrust into the centre of a complex and highly contested arena. Incrementally, the situation has worsened over the years, with the ‘cost of living’ crisis and systemic staff recruitment and retention issues taking their toll. Early years policy is now a political football, bouncing between competing ideologies and vested interests. 

There are now clear division lines between Labour and the Conservatives. Labour appears staunchly focused on prioritising comprehensive child development, emphasising a holistic and nurturing approach to early education. On the other side, the Conservatives have pivoted towards viewing the early years as a means of getting parents back to work, shaping their policies with a lens primarily focused on economic productivity. 

With the Conservatives using free childcare as a ‘vote winner’, as previous governments have done, there is concern that the implementation failures that have plagued the sector for so long will persist. 

As the prospect of Labour taking the reins becomes increasingly likely, it stands at a crossroad. The Party is confronted with the pressing decision of whether to persist with a clearly broken framework, risking further erosion of the quality of early childhood education, or opting for the challenging path of withdrawing the current ‘free childcare’ system, potentially facing backlash from parents and stakeholders.  

However, amidst this dilemma, there is a transformative opportunity – to reform the existing system comprehensively. By engaging in strategic overhauls and policy adjustments, informed by its ‘major’ review of the early years sector, Labour has the chance to steer the course towards a more effective, equitable, and responsive early years education system, ensuring a brighter future for the nation’s youngest minds. 

 

Childcare and the Early Years: What the DfE’s EYFS consultation may mean for the sector

GK consultant Noureen Ahmed examines the key aspects of the Department for Education’s Early Years Foundation Stage Framework consultation, and what it means for the early years sector. 

Over the past few months, the topics of childcare and early years education have been at the forefront of conversations within the education sector. The range of measures introduced in the Spring Budget 2023, including the significant funding commitment toward childcare provisions does illustrate the Government’s ambition to improve the early years landscape. Overall, the attention that childcare and early years education have accumulated is encouraging and we do expect to see this continue going forward. Nevertheless, it is also important to acknowledge the number of issues the early years sector is currently facing.

The daunting cost of living crisis, which has further exacerbated issues facing working parents and families, alongside the rising cost of childcare, certainly doesn’t alleviate the situation. England is emerging as one of the most expensive countries in the world when it comes to the cost of childcare. This is evident from a recently published report which found that “a UK couple where one parent earns the average wage and the other earns two-thirds of the average wage spends 29% of their wages on full time childcare.”

Proposals outlined in the Spring Budget 2023 included the expansion of 30-hour childcare to working parents of all children over the age of nine months and additional funding for schools and local authorities to implement ‘wraparound care’. Concerns have arisen over the expectation that the plans aren’t expected to come into effect until 2024/25, although it is important to note that the delays are intended to ensure nurseries are given sufficient time to prepare for these changes.

The Department for Education (DfE) appears committed to understanding the range of issues facing and launched a consultation in May 2023 to examine and scrutinise the Early Years Foundation Stage Framework (EYFS). This is a mandatory framework for providers ensuring that children ‘learn, develop, and are kept healthy and safe.’ Key proposals outlined in the consultation include:

  • Removing the requirement for Level 3 early educators to hold a Level 2 (GCSE or equivalent) maths qualifications, and instead apply this requirement to managers only.
  • Introducing an ‘experience-based route’ so that otherwise suitable practitioners who don’t hold an approved Level 3 qualification have a path to gaining ‘approved status’ without having to do a new qualification.
  • Changing the qualification requirements for ratios so that they would not apply outside of peak working hours.

The sector has been keen to stress the importance of delivering high quality early years education and care for all children; according to the DfE, the qualification changes are intended to do exactly that, as well as improving flexibility for providers and provide more opportunities for practitioners to join the workforce.

So what might this consultation mean for the sector?

Whilst it is encouraging to see the DfE propose improvements to the framework, it is also important for the Government to make sure it fully understands what exactly the sector is truly asking for. With a range of issues facing the sector, including recruitment issues, inflexibility regarding staff qualifications, and most recently, the Government’s proposal to relax staff-to-child ratios for two-year-olds in England from 1:4 to 1:5, there are concerns that this would impose added strain on providers, given their primary purpose is to provide high quality childcare education for all.

Nevertheless, the consultation, which recently came to a close, should have presented an opportunity for nurseries, childminders, providers, and parents to voice their views.

The sector should prepare for a number of changes, namely the plan to remove the requirement for level 3 educators to hold a level 2 maths qualification and changing the percentage of level 2 qualified staff required per ratio in an attempt to boost the workforce and make it easier for people to join the sector. If implemented, these changes would likely be welcomed by the sector as it creates more opportunities for those who have a passion in joining the sector but shy away because they are not currently equipped with the necessary qualifications.

Overall, it is positive to see a heightened focus on the sector, which is expected to continue ahead of the next General Election. The consultation clearly presents a valuable opportunity for the Government to demonstrate its commitment to valuing and protecting the Early Years staff while simultaneously ensuring that all children are provided with the support and care they rightfully deserve.

GK are experts in the education policy landscape, if you would like to hear more from our consultants get in touch with noureen@gkstrategy.com.

GK Insight: What to expect for Education policy in 2023

GK Point of View - What can we learn from the Nordic Model and the Times Commission Report for Early Years_

GK Point of View – What can we learn from the Nordic Model and the Times Commission Report for Early Years?

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GK Associate and early years specialist, Monica Thompson, takes a close look at what the UK can learn from the Nordic Model for childcare, and analyses the early years reforms suggested in the recent Times Education Commission Report.

The Nordic Model

In June 2022, Children & Families Minister Will Quince visited nurseries in Sweden as part of a mission to cut childcare costs [1]. The minister visited multiple settings, both state-run and private, and met with senior officials from the Swedish counterpart of Ofsted and Sweden’s Minister for Early Years Education & Childcare. The discussion focused on how the settings in Sweden are able to provide high-quality childcare without putting children at risk and enforcing staff to child ratios. Quince noted that he is determined to address the cost and availability of childcare and learn from our international neighbours.

Some evidence on what works in Early Education in the Nordic countries was provided by Andreas Rasch-Christensen, Research Director at VIA University College in Denmark at the Early Years Alliance Annual Conference – also in June 2022. The Nordic countries have some of the highest employment rates for working mothers and high take-up of childcare places. Andreas pointed out that in Denmark above 90% of early years children are enrolled in day care and approximately 40% of the day care employees lack an official diploma. He also highlighted the importance of the pedagogical foundation – in other words, how Danish and Nordic models of early childhood education are considered. Their work focuses on collaboration with parents to support the children and further improve pedagogical practices. It also underlines the importance of nature and the outdoor environment. Indeed, it has been shown that connections to outdoor living can affect children’s strength, flexibility and coordination, while also reducing stress. These pedagogical foundations, guidelines and themes – as opposed to narrow learning goals – give an insight into Nordic models of early childhood education in both theory and practice.

The Times Education Commission Report

The need for Early Years reform has also been highlighted in the recent Times Education Commission Report. Published on 15 June, the final report from the Commission was entitled Bringing out the Best, How to transform education and unleash the potential of every child [2]. This year-long project has been led by the Times’s Rachel Sylvester, supported by a team of 22 commissioners with backgrounds in business, education, science, the arts and government. The report has been described as one of the most comprehensive inquiries into the UK’s education system and more than 600 witnesses contributed. The report rightly points out the challenges of declining social mobility as well as, more positively, the myriad opportunities presented by new technological innovations.

The commissioners’ work culminated with a 12-point plan to significantly rethink the British education system:

  1. A British Baccalaureate
  2. An “electives premium” 
  3. A new cadre of Career Academies 
  4. A significant boost to early years funding 
  5. An army of undergraduate tutors
  6. A laptop or tablet for every child
  7. Wellbeing being put at the heart of education
  8. Bringing out the best in teaching
  9. A reformed Ofsted
  10. Better training for teachers to identify children with special educational needs
  11. New university campuses in 50 higher education “cold spots”
  12. A 15-year strategy for education.

Significantly for the Early Years sector, the report recommends (as noted above, point 4) “a significant boost to early years funding” – noting that “The extra funding should be targeted at the most vulnerable. A unique pupil number would be given to every child from birth, to level the playing field before they get to school. Every primary school should have a library.”

The Commission also identified many challenges facing the Early Years sector. Indeed, it found, more generally, that the education system currently fails on all measures – from giving young people the intellectual and emotional tools they need as adults to providing businesses with the skills they require. For Early Years specifically, it found that inequalities are ingrained from an early age and preschool education is crucial but often overlooked in this country. The report also highlighted that while one thing that parents put at the top of the list for their children’s education is confidence about their wellbeing, the evidence suggests that they are being let down.

The chapter on Social Mobility and Levelling Up contains also many recommendations for the Early Years sector, including:

  • funding should be targeted at the most disadvantaged and focused on education and child development
  • the 30-hour entitlement should be extended to non-working parents to ensure that the children with the least support at home received it in a professional setting
  • the Early Years Pupil Premium of £302 should be brought into line with primary school rates of £1,345. Raising it, at an estimated cost of £130 million a year, would make it easier for nurseries to break even, reduce the reliance on cross-subsidy and allow providers to pay their workers a more competitive wage
  • there should be a better career structure, professional development and training for Early Years teachers to develop a well-qualified workforce with the appropriate knowledge, skills and experience to deliver high-quality early education
  • every child should get a “school readiness card” at the end of nursery, describing their skills and development
  • a unique pupil number, allocated at birth, would encourage greater co-ordination and data-sharing between government agencies (such as education, health and social services) to stop the most vulnerable children falling through the gaps [3].

There is an increased awareness of the Nordic Model in the Early Years sector and an increased understanding of why it’s successful. At the same time, the Times Commission’s recommendations provide a plethora of evidence on what the sector needs. The question is whether these important developments will translate into practical policy decisions.

[1] https://www.nurseryworld.co.uk/news/article/children-and-families-minister-visits-nurseries-in-sweden-as-part-of-mission-to-cut-childcare-costs

[2] https://nuk-tnl-editorial-prod-staticassets.s3.amazonaws.com/2022/education-commission/Times%20Education%20Commission%20final%20report.pdf

[3] https://early-education.org.uk/times-education-commission-calls-for-significant-boost-to-early-years-funding/

GK Point of View - Monica Thompson on the challenges facing the early years sector

GK Point of View – Monica Thompson on the challenges facing the early years sector

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GK Consultant and education expert, Monica Thompson, takes a look at the challenges facing the early years sector.

While the Covid-19 pandemic has affected the entire education sector, this period has been particularly challenging for nurseries, pre-schools and other early years settings. Ofsted’s recently published findings on the pandemic’s impact on children of all ages and backgrounds. It reported that children who had been hardest hit by the pandemic actually regressed in terms of their basic skills and learning. Similarly, research by the Sutton Trust from May 2021 [1] emphasised that over half of parents of pre-school children were worried about Covid-19’s impact on their children’s wellbeing and long-term development.

The Social Mobility Commission report ‘The stability of the early years workforce in England’, published in 2020, had previously found that that low pay, heavy workloads and a lack of career development for early years workers were likely to have a serious impact on nurseries, pre-schools and other settings. The pandemic proceeded to lay bare the vulnerability of the already struggling early years sector. In April 2022, the Department for Education published three new reports which were commissioned from the National Centre for Social Research (NatCen) and Frontier Economics [2]. The reports focus on Covid’s impact on the early years sector and jointly emphasise the challenges posed by funding constraints and severe staffing issues (including workforce recruitment / retention), as well as wider economic pressures and generally rising costs. The reports also raised concerns about deregulation and the mooted relaxation in staff/child ratios – stating that it might lead shortages of qualified and experienced people in the sector.

The same reports also found that 72% of private, voluntary and independent (PVI) nurseries and pre-schools have lost staff since the pandemic began. Nearly half (47%) of PVI nurseries and pre-schools said the main reason for staff leaving was to seek better pay while, worryingly, an even higher proportion (60%) reported that those exiting are leaving the sector entirely. The reports also collectively found that 54% of PVI settings and 49% of childminders report that their total costs have ‘notably’ increased on pre-Covid levels. Indeed, only 39% of private providers and 21% of voluntary providers were in financial surplus in 2021 and, for childminders, the figure fell to just 19% [3].

It is worth noting that all main political parties are now emphasising the growing problems over childcare’s affordability. The main focus of the current government, in terms of addressing these early years financial challenges, has generally been on parents’ employment and behaviour, not their circumstances. However, the paradigm has started to shift in recent months. For example, in October 2021, Nadhim Zahawi MP, during his first conference speech as Education Secretary, recognised that 40% of educational inequality is ‘baked in’ by the age of five. He also said that the Government would invest a record £180 million in ‘outstanding’ early years staff.

Looking ahead, we can expect a stronger focus on early years issues over the months ahead. Ofsted’s recently published five-year strategy [4] emphasises the inspectorate’s work in the early years sector and recognises the pandemic’s impact on young children. Indeed, Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector (HMCI), Amanda Spielman, has said that Ofsted wants to bring early education to the fore and will work on developing the associated evidence base. The organisation’s new 2022-2027 strategy not only acknowledges that the sector has been hit hard by Covid-19 but quantifies the problem by recognising that, during the course of the pandemic, the number of registered childcare providers fell from over 75,000 to just below 70,000 – with childminders accounting for the bulk of the reduction. However, ultimately, Ofsted’s commitments will only work if they are backed by government policy that supports the Early Years sector. The sector also needs appropriate investment to guarantee that nurseries, pre-schools and other early years settings are able to provide quality care and education.

For more information, please contact Monica at monica@gkstrategy.com

[1] Fairness First: Social Mobility, Covid and Education Recovery – Sutton Trust

[2] The three reports can be read below:

[3] Impact of Covid on childcare settings highlighted in new DfE research – Early Years Educator

[4] Ofsted Strategy 2022 – 2027