I have a 'wish list' of changes which could have a positive effect on the private nursery sector during 2007.
First and foremost, I hope that Government intervention in our sector will come with a little more forethought and planning than has been shown recently. For example, the fundamental unfairness surrounding the 'top-up'
fees issue will not go away, and neither will the inability of the private sector to pick up the tab for politicians' own wish lists.
The concept of a given amount of free nursery education to children aged three or more is highly laudable, and no-one in the sector that I know of would seek to reverse this valuable opportunity. However, as it is currently structured, the Government has created goodwill for itself by simply giving away something it does not own, and placing the private sector in serious jeopardy.
The price the Government is prepared to pay nursery operators for this provision is simply not related to either the price each nursery may charge, or, in many cases, even the cost of offering that provision. While parents and the private sector sought to come to an equitable 'top-up'
solution in the past, this has now been declared 'unacceptable'.
Last year saw no resolution to this problem, except in that it became apparent that many private nurseries cannot afford to pick up the tab for the Government's generosity. But a gift once given is hard to take back, and there seems no willingness by this Government to accept responsibility for the problems caused.
My second wish, and one perhaps more likely to come to fruition, is for a massive increase in the funding available for supporting and training nursery staff. Working in a nursery at the salary levels available is one of the most taxing ways of earning a living. Little wonder that stacking shelves at a supermarket is, for some, a viable though disappointing alternative. If the Government is truly intent on a policy of 'Every Child Matters' then an environment that permits those willing to dedicate themselves to providing such care must be made more attractive.
My final wish is that the mainstream press will seek to strike a fair and reasonable balance when writing about our sector. Parents have enough to contend with in trying to develop a satisfactory 'work/life' balance, without further worry heaped on them by reports of limited or hypothetical problems which could occur to their children while enjoying nursery life.
Alan Bentley is chairman of the Childcare Corporation