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Commenting on the new EPI report on the early years workforce and child outcomes, Neil Leitch, chief executive of the Early Years Alliance, said:

“We know that highly-qualified early years staff have a positive impact on child outcomes and it is notable that this report finds that this impact lasts throughout the primary years, rather than fading out earlier on as has been suggested by previous research. 

“For years now, we have called on the government to do more ensure that the early years sector is able to both recruit and retain high-quality practitioners – both those with degree-level qualifications, and those who may not have a degree but have a wealth of experience and an in-depth knowledge of child development. 

“The fact is that quality costs, and unfortunately, years of government underfunding has left us with a situation where salaries in the sector are among the lowest across all industries and far too many excellent practitioners are making the difficult decision to leave the early years permanently. 

“As such, while we welcome the EPI’s call on the government to do more to review the quality and qualifications of the early years workforce, without a commitment to invest substantially more into the sector as a whole, such a review will not result in any meaningful change. 

“Similarly, while we recognise the rationale behind the EPI’s call for an extension to the 30 hours offer to help ensure that those children from more disadvantaged backgrounds benefit from more hours of early education, without a fundamental change to the way that the early years is funded, such a policy could place unsustainable pressure on a sector already struggling to keep its head above water.”