Sector views sought ahead of new workforce strategy
Hannah Crown
Tuesday, August 25, 2020
A pan-sector commission is seeking practitioners’ views on entrenched sector problems ahead of its plans to publish a new workforce strategy.
The survey, and call for evidence, has been launched by the Early Years Workforce Commission, which was set up in March to push for solutions to key issues such as recruitment, status, and training.
The commission, which includes representatives from all key sector bodies and awarding organisation CACHE, wants to hear views from the frontline on training, CPD, recruitment and retention, plus the impact of the Coronavirus pandemic.
The commission says it hopes to understand what needs to be achieved to ensure the sector can continue to provide high-quality childcare and says it wants to hear from as wide a variety of settings and individuals as possible.
As well as the survey, the commission are also asking organisations, individuals and businesses to respond to a call for evidence on sector sustainability following the pandemic.
The Government’s own early years workforce strategy was published in March 2017 but has been criticised for lacking teeth, with plans to boost the early years graduate workforce abandoned and little to address systemic low-pay and low-status issues.
Liz Bayram, Chief Executive of PACEY, and commission member, said the commission intends to publish a ‘solutions-focused plan’, with key recommendations for governments and others, to support the early years workforce be recognised as the highly professional, talented and committed individuals they are.
She said ‘Ultimately, we want to ensure the long-term sustainability of this sector. We can only do this if our recommendations are based on a wide range of experiences, ideas and thoughts from people and organisations across the sector. So today we are urging everyone who cares about early education to get involved and share their ideas.’
Other commission representatives include Early Education, The Early Years Alliance, TACTYC, the NDNA, thinktank the Education Policy Institute, education charity the Sutton Trust and education union Voice.
The survey can be accessed online here, and the Call for Evidence can be accessed online here. The deadline for responses is 25th September at 6pm.
