There can be little doubt that early years education has emerged as one of the cornerstones of Conservative government policy. One of the party’s first high-profile announcements was the intention to double funded provision, from 15 to 30 hours, for three- to four-year-olds with working parents from 2017.
But it won’t come as news to hear that early years settings have said, en masse, that the proposed funding rate is unviable. Last November, the Government responded to these concerns by publishing a review of childcare costs. However, the Department for Education, in analysis of responses to its consultation, was ‘unable to understand’ the true cost of delivering the free entitlement because responses to its consultation were ‘often not supported by figures’ (its own words).
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