Children and families minister visits nurseries in Sweden as part of mission to cut childcare costs
Katy Morton
Friday, June 17, 2022
The children and families minister Will Quince has this week visited early years settings in Sweden as part of the Government’s fact-finding mission to lower the cost of childcare.
In March, the minister said he planned to visit different countries to 'see how they do things differently' in terms of childcare regulation.
The minister visited four settings – one state-run nursery, an independent setting, one run by the Swedish Outdoor Association, and a parent co-operative where teachers focus on the curriculum while parents manage budgets, cover staff absences and clean.
On his Twitter page, Quince said he had witnessed a ‘maths lesson among the trees’ at Ur Och Skur Gronlingen Pre-School.
The minister also met with the Swedish Headteachers’ Union to talk about professional development, training and recruitment, Skol Inspektion – the country’s equivalent to Ofsted – to discuss how Swedish settings provide high-quality childcare without compromising children’s safety in a country without enforced staff: child ratios, and Sweden’s minister for early years education and childcare.
Ahead of his visits to settings, Quince tweeted, ‘Sweden has one of the highest employment rates for working mothers among OECD countries and high take-up of childcare places – I’ve said we need to look at best practice from other countries, to make sure our policies are effective and reaching as many families as possible.’
In another tweet, he concluded, ‘I’m determined to tackle the cost and availability of childcare for working parents, which means improving our evidence about what works from our international neighbours.’
