Alliance calls for greater government investment in PVI sector

13th February 2014

Commenting on the speech delivered by early years minister Elizabeth Truss at today’s Resolution Foundation conference, Meeting the childcare challenge for working parents, Alliance chief executive Neil Leitch said:

“We are disappointed that the government continues to ignore the needs of the PVI sector. During her speech today, Elizabeth Truss spoke proudly about how much the government is investing in order to support schools in delivering early years education and care. But when it came to PVI sector, the only governmental support she seemed to focus on was the relaxation of building regulations.

Do the government really think that this counts as adequate sector support? Do they not understand that without adequate funding, no provider will be able to make the investment needed to ensure they are actually able to deliver the two-year-old offer - a point that was, in fact, raised by schools representatives attending today’s event?

“The picture the minister paints of the future of early years is a deeply concerning one: a sector full of large-scale, cheap and, in some cases, poor-quality state provision, and alongside a decimated PVI sector, the result of an almost exclusive focus on school childcare and a freeze on any funding for PVI providers.

“It is at least heartening to see that the concerns of the PVI sector are shared by many of our colleagues operating schools and that they, like us, are likely to resist these proposals - unless, that is, the government decides to make taking two-year-olds a statutory obligation for schools.”

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Notes for editors

  2. The Pre-school Learning Alliance is the largest voluntary sector provider of quality affordable childcare and education in England.
  3. Through direct provision and its membership of 14,000 nurseries, sessional pre-schools and parent and toddler groups, the Alliance supports over 800,000 children and their families in England. The Alliance also develops and runs family learning programmes, offers information and advice, runs acclaimed training and accreditation programmes and campaigns to influence early years policy and practice.
  4. For information about the Pre-school Learning Alliance, visit our website:

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