'Teachers need relevant training'

More funding is needed to train the under-threes childcare workforce, a leading early years academic said last week. Professor Lesley Abbott, director of the Birth to Three Matters project, said, 'If the Government wants to employ a trained teacher in every children's centre, the Framework needs to be introduced during both initial and in-service teacher training. Unless this is a recommendation and a requirement, there is a danger that teachers employed in children's centres will not be equipped with the right knowledge and skills.'