The Department for Education and Skills has funded the National Day Nurseries Association to facilitate the review of the standards at levels 2, 3 and 4 for early years care and education. The first period of consultation, from last September to December, surveyed the existing standards and qualifications struc- tures, canvassed the views of practitioners and organisations through 12 focus groups across the UK, and conducted telephone interviews with 100 other organisations and practitioners.
Responses have shown that many practitioners felt the term 'early years'
did not adequately describe what they do and may restrict the type of work they can do in the future. Practitioners have been asked in a questionnaire whether they support the proposed new title of 'National Occupational Standards for Children and Families'.
There is a proposal to no longer specify an age range within the standards or qualifications, except in the case of children under three.
The questionnaire seeks comments on a draft template for the standards.
According to the accompanying notes, 'Consultation has indicated that standards should not be over-complex and need to be clearer and simpler expressions of competence. It is felt that standards should be flexible, anti-discriminatory and include both technical skills and "soft" skills such as problem-solving and working with others.'
Consultation questionnaires can be downloaded from the website www.ndna.org, and e-mailed back to Louise.M@ndna.org.uk by 31 March.
Practitioners are also being asked their views on a set of principles and values based on the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child and which stress that the welfare of the child is paramount and that its needs and rights are at the centre of all practice and provision.