The Childcare Forum represents 350,000 childcare providers caring forone and a half million children. They are members of the Pre-SchoolLearning Alliance, the National Day Nurseries Association, the DaycareTrust, the National Childminding Association and 4Children.
The forum will lobby Government on issues crucial to the success of theten-year childcare strategy, including long-term sustainability, futurefunding priorities and workforce development.
It is seeking funding to carry out research into the sustainability ofnew provision. The Forum has already met with the Treasury.
Steve Alexander, chief executive of the Pre-school Learning Alliance,said, 'Collectively the group is much stronger than any oneorganisation. There is a commonality of issues - for example, pay is anunanswered and unresolved concern, as well as affordability for familiesand whether services are reaching all communities.'
The Forum's work will complement that being undertaken by the MajorProviders Group, made up of some of the biggest chains in the UK, whichis carrying out a large-scale review into how to play a greater role inthe childcare strategy.