At the union's annual conference, members said they were 'deeply concerned' about the Government target that by 2010 educational provision in all children's centres should be led by Early Years Professionals, seeing it as a threat to the employment status and conditions of early years teachers.
Delegates upheld a motion that said early years education at children's centres could only be effective under a head with qualified teacher status.
NUT members also said they 'deplored' the actions of some local authorities in outsourcing children's centre provision, calling this a further threat to the role of the teacher in centres.
John Bangs, head of education at the NUT, said, 'We have real concerns over a two-tier system developing - a private and voluntary sector where there are almost no qualified teachers, and a maintained sector which has many more qualified teachers.'
The motion highlighted that there is currently no national agreement on pay and conditions in place for teachers acquiring EYP status and that children's centres are open for 48 weeks of the year, compared with schools which typically open for 195 days. The motion called this 'a means of circumventing the standard teacher's contract'.
Jane Haywood, chief executive of the Children's Workforce Development Council, said, 'EYPs have a vital role to play in the children's centre team, as they bring particular skills in working with babies and young children and are able to lead early years practice. We believe that EYP status contributes to the overall professionalisation of those working in early years and is another step in helping to build a world-class children's workforce.'
NUT members also pledged to campaign for a re-think of the Early Years Foundation Stage, calling the curriculum overly formal, with too much emphasis on assessment, which it said could 'distort' children's learning experiences.
