
With news of an entirely unthought out expansion of Early Education in the budget, the heart-breaking news of Ruth Perry’s death, and closures of nurseries on the rise, it’s difficult not to feel infuriated. Inadequate plans demonstrate that there aren’t any plans at all. Looming strikes, dilapidated school buildings and the lack of provision for vulnerable children and their families are hard to escape.
When children start at nursery, it has been a long-time habit to speak to parents about the importance of supporting the whole nursery community. I explain that when I am older, greyer and (more) infirm, it will be these children that are giving me my medication, taking me to the loo and brushing my hair (amongst more unsavoury elements of old age that I don’t want to lower the tone with here).
If, as part of a community we simply focus on what matters to us, (for parents, their own child) then this is not to anyone’s advantage. The future paramedics, doctors, care workers, teachers, early years educators – the list is inexhaustible, are right there in front of us every day and we ignore this fact at our peril.
As children grow up and go through school into their adolescence and adulthood, they need others around them to be the best they can be. If we support everyone and see this as an investment for ourselves as well as for others, we could create a world that is safer, supported, and inclusive when things get tough.
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