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Commenting, Neil Leitch, CEO of the Early Years Alliance, said:

“We know that the first five years of a child’s life are absolutely pivotal to their long-term learning and development. As such, we welcome Ð°ÄÃÅÁùºÏ²Ê¹ÙÍø¿ª½±â€™s increased focus on supporting the early years sector in its new five-year strategy.   

“That said, even with these positive intentions, it’s difficult to see how much actual change Ð°ÄÃÅÁùºÏ²Ê¹ÙÍø¿ª½±, as an independent inspection body, will be able to bring about. Even before the onset of Covid-19, early years providers were grappling with a raft of challenges, such as staffing shortages and immense financial pressures as a result of years of government underfunding - and there is no doubt that these challenges have been hugely exacerbated by the pandemic, with more and more settings being pushed to the brink of closure. 

“As such, while Ð°ÄÃÅÁùºÏ²Ê¹ÙÍø¿ª½±â€™s pledge to develop an evidence base on what good early years practice looks like, and to issue specialist training for early years inspectors, are broadly positive policies, these alone will do little to tackle many of the concerning trends that Ð°ÄÃÅÁùºÏ²Ê¹ÙÍø¿ª½± has rightly identified, such as continued recruitment and retention challenges and sustained declines in provider numbers. 

“Ultimately, what the early years sector needs is adequate investment to ensure that settings are able to deliver quality care and education to children and families, something that is all the more important given the impact of the pandemic on children’s early development. While we hope that the inspectorate will continue to highlight the vital importance of the early years sector, ultimately, tangible change is something that only the government, and not Ð°ÄÃÅÁùºÏ²Ê¹ÙÍø¿ª½±, can deliver. "