Tories talk to new PVI policy group
A Conservative government would ensure that all of the money intended for the private, voluntary and independent sector reaches it, said Maria Miller, shadow Minister for the Family.
Maria Miller MP
She told a meeting of the newly-formed Day Nursery Policy Group, 'Investment is being made but we are not seeing the results - standards in literacy and numeracy are continuing to drop at Key Stage 1.
'I am concerned with three key questions: is the funding right and is it getting through; is the curriculum right; and can the workforce deliver?'
Ms Miller expressed concern that according to the Federation of Small Businesses, 200 more small nursery businesses were likely to close down by the end of this year.
On the subject of the EYFS, she said that the loss of Beverley Hughes as children's minister was a retrograde step.
'The EYFS offers the quality assurance we all want, but is it too heavy-handed and is it focusing on the right things?' she said. 'I know that the workforce is dedicated and I am bowled over by its commitment. But I worry that many practitioners do not have the basic tools and some are using the wrong techniques. We need to address how we can improve standards in numeracy, literacy and writing.'
Nursery owners at the meeting questioned the emphasis on graduate funding and expressed a desire to 'grow their own talent'. They said they wanted to develop their own skills mix and be part of the local community by training young people.
Richard Lay, director of Wiltshire-based White Horse Child Care, said, 'We've had ten years of dumbing down qualifications and we need to get back to proper standards.'
Ms Miller reiterated the need for early years practitioners to have basic skills. She said, 'Does the NVQ equip practitioners with the ability to ensure children make the correct letter formations and progress in reading, and use synthetic phonics? These are basic techniques that a relatively unskilled person can use, but they do not seem to be coming through.'
June O'Sullivan, chief executive of the London Early Years Foundation, said there needed to be tighter and more consistent guidance for local authorities in commissioning services and overseeing training standards.
Alan Bentley, chairman and chief executive of the Childcare Corporation, called for funding to be ring-fenced. 'The Major Providers Group study has shown that £1bn has disappeared into a black hole,' he said. In response, Ms Miller said, 'This confirms the need to wake up to this problem.'
WHAT THE DAY NURSERY POLICY GROUP IS AIMING FOR
The meeting attended by Maria Miller established the Day Nursery Policy Group as a representative body with the stated aim to 'influence and challenge Government policy with the intention of improving the position of pre-school childcare in the UK. It is non-partisan and aims to include representation from large and small operators in the non-maintained sector.'
June O'Sullivan, chief executive of the London Early Years Foundation, said, 'Part of what we want to do is make better use of the money that is available to us - starting with the principle that we can add value and drive the quality agenda.'
Bright Horizons' finance director Jeanne Atkinson said the group would need to reach the ears of the advisors around policy as well as the ministers themselves. 'We need to be in a position to suggest solutions and they have to be well crafted,' she said. 'The best we can do is become the Government's advisors.'
A decision was made to concentrate on three key areas - quality of childcare, funding and training, with particular members assigned to co-ordinate these areas.
Chairman of the Childcare Corporation Alan Bentley said, 'Anything that can help the Government to create efficiencies in its spending will be highly sought after. We are quite a powerful sector and we can support change in a tactical way.'
The Day Nursery Policy Group is now seeking to expand its current membership of around 30 operators.
- See 'To the point', p12
