Montessori Schools Association conference: Funding in early years remains 'the most political' issue

In his address Martin Bradley will tell more than 900 delegates that there is ‘a reluctance, almost a timidity’ in Government to deal with the ongoing issues of under-funding for the free entitlement for two, three and four year olds.

The Montessori Schools Association is hosting its largest-ever conference at the Institute of Education in London on Saturday.

‘Funding remains the most political area of early years and one of the most intractable,’ he will say.

Mr Bradley met the education and childcare minister Elizabeth Truss in November and last week attended with two other organisations a seminar led by the  on funding and other issues.

‘It is clear that while the minister and the Department have many good ideas which we would fully endorse and wish to work with them on, there is a reluctance, almost timidity, to directly address the funding issue for two, three and four year old places,’ he will say.

In nearly every area of the country the funding provided does not cover the cost, ‘meaning that during the funded hours, settings are working at a loss which has to be recouped by inflating other charges’, Mr Bradley will say.

‘As a result parents are often put off taking the extra hours due to their apparently high cost. MSA remains firmly of the opinion that allowing market forces to supplement the current hourly rate with a top-up paid by the parent is the most practical and most honest way of establishing a viable service. This would be transparent and honest for all concerned.

‘We need to get away from forcing providers to make up the shortfall in funded hours by inflating the cost of non-funded hours.’

Allowing top-up fees would also enable nurseries to ‘to reassert that the prime relationship is between the provider and the family – including the child – and so focus on the quality of education and care for the child. At present parents inevitably feel that they alone have the relationship with the provider, but that is not true. Instead the family-provider relationship is being controlled and directed by the Government as a third party in the relationship via its levels of funding and the requirements as to how this is applied.’

Mr Bradley will also raise concerns about plans to introduce childminder agencies.

The MSA is more positive about plans in the forthcoming Deregulation Bill to remove some mandatory elements in the EYFS.

So far 145 Montessori schools have been accredited by the Montessori Evaluation and Accreditation Board.

Mr Bradley will say that the scheme has started the second cycle of accreditations and that with the end of the local authority’s role in quality improvement, MEAB accreditation will potentially carry greater weight in evidence that Montessori schools can present at their Ofsted inspections.

The theme of the conference, ‘Montessori and the Inspired Child’ has been influenced by Liz Buckler, author of the ‘The Inspired Child’ books. Ms Buckler who trained as a primary teacher has worked with Herefordshire Council’s early years team for the past eight years.

Other speakers include Martin Pace, owner of Reflections Nursery in Worthing on creativity and children as ‘naturally divergent thinkers’, and Jan Dubiel, the national development co-ordinator of Early Excellence, who will talk about effective observation and assessment in the EYFS.