The government has just published their new strategy for ensuring that every child gets the best start in life “which they deserve

 and need” and no-one would disagree with that aim. The strategy rightly identifies that the infrastructure that was built to support families in the previous Labour government, with programmes like Sure Start, needs rebuilding, and that will take time. I sincerely hope that the new Best Start Family Service, Family Hubs and digital service will achieve the co-ordination and co-operation that will be needed. 

The parts of the strategy that most interest us at Acorn are those that deal with making early education and childcare more accessible, and improving the quality of early years provision. Again, no-one could disagree that those aims are critically important, and there is much in the strategy that gives us hope for improvement. So let’s consider what is being planned.

More funding than ever is being provided for funded early education and childcare. I could explain why I think it’s over-complicated and that the calculations for funding rates are wrong, but at least there IS funding, and many working families will welcome the extension to cover babies and toddlers from 9 months from September this year. The problem is in the lack of transparency about how much of a shortfall there is in the funding for 3 and 4-year-olds, and the well-intentioned, but utterly misguided insistence that providers should charge separately for so-called optional extras. I’m constantly on my soapbox about why this is fundamentally wrong, as it promotes a two-tier system and entrenches inequality, so I’ll spare you the rant in this piece (you can read it elsewhere in our blogs) but I’d like to focus on the availability of places.

Accessibility relies on availability. Those of us working in the sector have seen a dramatic increase in the demand for baby and toddler places, unsurprisingly, given the extension of funding. The problem is that this ISN’T being addressed by the creation of more nursery places in schools, which is the government’s proud commitment. Babies don’t belong in schools, and most schools would rather stick to early education, not the specialist nature of the care and early learning that early years professionals are able to provide. Creating more nurseries in schools, which are often term-time only and operating for short days, will do nothing to fill the gap in provision, and most of the funding that has been given to local authorities is being spent in the maintained sector.

In some ways, I can understand the rationale behind that targeting of funding. When capital funding is made freely available to private and voluntary providers, there is always a risk that the new buildings and improvements are a means of boosting the profits of providers, which may then be extracted by shareholders and investors. I’m encouraged by the three mentions in the strategy of social enterprise, as there is an opportunity for local authorities to recognise the benefits of investing in organisations with a social purpose, and the strategy expresses a desire to work with us – hurray! Another aspect of the strategy talks about supporting inclusion, and that is at the heart of our practice.

Finally, the section on improving quality also offers some hopeful messages. There is a recognition of the long-standing recruitment and retention issues in the sector (which requires higher salaries to be paid and more opportunities for 

career progression, amongst other things) and a workforce development plan which includes support for early years professionals to boost their qualifications will be warmly welcomed. I feel a little bit cynical about the school-nursery partnerships, as they often have a power imbalance that leaves nurseries feeling like second-class providers, and we know we’re not!

The launch of the report on Early Years Social Enterprises and the formation of the Early Years Social Enterprise Collective will hopefully continue to build awareness of the benefits of purpose-driven organisations. The track record for social enterprises on quality

 is impressive, and many local authorities have realised that our genuinely inclusive practice also often outstrips profit-focused companies. Much more needs to be done to raise the profile of social enterprises in early years, and I hope the implementation of this exciting strategy will genuinely improve the life chances of the babies, toddlers and children in our care. Excellent early years provision cannot be a panacea for poverty, poor housing and ill-health, but it can certainly make a big difference (which is why forest schools for children who live in flats are NOT something that should only be for the families who can afford to pay extra!! – Sorry, the rant found its way out after all 😊)

That’s why we’re so proud to be part of the Early Years Social Enterprise Collective, and why we believe that by working together across sectors, services, and communities we can help turn this strategy into a reality that truly delivers the best start in life for every child.

Read the report here! And explore our thoughts on the issue of so-called optional extras in this blog post.