Council backpedals on teachers' input

A council report last week said that the 115 partner providers were finding it increasingly difficult to meet the teacher-involvement requirement because of the cost and the lack of teachers with early years experience.

Some providers have expressed doubts about whether the teacher's input has actually improved the quality of provision, and the report says 'the effect on morale has sometimes been counter-productive'. Some centres have found themselves reluctantly employing teachers who had inappropriate experience or qualifications and have had a high turnover, which has proved disruptive.

Partner providers have also questioned whether it is right for Edinburgh to demand teacher involvement when other local authorities do not. The Scottish Executive is due shortly to publish guidance on the proposed new standards which will come into force to regulate early education and care from 2002. It is expected that these will specify the need for teacher input but will not include requirements about its length or nature.