Letters
Letter of the week
RATIOS NEED CLARITY
I find the articles by Laura Henry really useful, but the 'Fully staffed' feature (Work Matters, 15 May) could have more thoroughly explored an issue many childcare providers are struggling to get clear advice on.
We host networking lunches every quarter and this issue is always raised because of the mixed advice providers get when they seek clarification on ratios.
Can the problem of lunch cover, breaks, planning time etc and ratios be more thoroughly explored in a follow-up article? For example, is it OK to have a team member go to the staff room for their lunch as long as they remain on the premises? During this time, are they still counted in ratio? Is it OK to hold a quick ten-minute update meeting with your unit leaders if the meeting is on site? Some providers tell me Ofsted say this is fine, others say it is not. When I call Ofsted for clarification, they will not commit themselves. Childcare providers are left unsure if they are meeting their requirements.
Most providers I speak to, without passing on substantial costs to their parents, cannot afford to have additional staff in to cover lunch, breaks and so on. Clear and unambiguous clarification on this point would be much welcomed.
Jennie Johnson, managing director, Kids Allowed, Manchester
Letter of the Week wins £30 worth of books
Editor's note: We will run an in-depth feature on the important issues that you raise next month, plus see Analysis, p10-11
TIME TO CHANGE EYFS
The Children, Schools and Families Parliamentary Committee held a special meeting on the Early Years Foundation Stage last week to ascertain whether a full-scale investigation of the framework is merited. Stemming as it does from Open EYE's meeting with committee chair Barry Sheerman MP in January, the meeting suggests that Parliament is taking Open EYE's arguments very seriously. To date, some 70 MPs have also signed shadow minister Annette Brooke's Early Day Motion raising our concerns.
A real opportunity now exists for a detailed, dispassionate investigation into EYFS - an investigation that can enable contested and sincerely held viewpoints to be respectfully heard and openly discussed in the public sphere. If Open EYE's concerns do have any substance, then it is surely better that any agreed shortcomings in the framework be rectified now, rather than waiting for a two-year review, by which time a substantial amount of damage might have already been done.
There was unanimous disquiet expressed in the meeting about the age-appropriateness of certain of the EYFS Learning and Development requirements, with added concerns about the likely impact of a legally enforced, assessment-driven approach upon practitioners, and upon the subtlety of practice that is surely essential in effective early-years settings. There was also strong support for the view that not only can a compulsory framework never be a substitute for a properly trained and remunerated workforce, but the way in which under-trained practitioners may enforce the guidance could actually worsen the quality of practice, as a result of its over-mechanistic interpretation.
Open EYE appreciates the balanced coverage that Nursery World has given to our campaign, especially in light of the magazine's support for the principle of EYFS. We have never been 'against' EYFS in its entirety. Rather, we have highlighted certain aspects we believe to be problematic - concerns seemingly shared by many practitioners and parents, which were fully aired at the CSF Committee meeting. We argue for qualified and carefully nuanced 'support-with-reservations' for a framework which may well have substantial flaws, as opposed to the uncritical, non-discerning support for the EYFS expressed in some quarters.
This is surely a time for all of us to put aside any vested and ego-driven interests, and to trust a relatively apolitical process in which an all-party committee of MPs of experience and integrity can thoroughly investigate the EYFS, and propose sensible and workable changes if they deem any to be necessary.
Dr Richard House, 'Open EYE' Campaign Steering Group
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The Editor, Nursery World, 174 Hammersmith Road, London W6 7JP letter.nw@haymarket.com 020 8267 8402.
