We're proud of you and we're with you — a message to the sector from Neil Leitch

By Neil Leitch

I hope you, your families and your loved ones are well and safe.

I wanted to write to you at what I know is a busy and, for many of you, stressful and anxious time.

I know that those who work in the early years are no strangers to having a large weight of responsibility resting on their shoulders.

You are responsible for the learning and development of young children at the most critical time of their lives. It is no exaggeration to say that your influence helps shape the paths that the children in your care will take for the rest of their lives.

But even with this wealth of experience, what is currently being asked of you by government is no insignificant thing.

You have been tasked with deciding whether or not to open your doors in the middle of a global pandemic. You have been asked to start making plans, to deal with questions from parents and to get ready to reopen your settings, with no additional financial support to date and government guidance that has all too often been slow to arrive.

The best interests of your children and families

I am conscious that it is not my place, or the Alliance’s place, to tell any provider what to do in these complicated circumstances.

Every setting - whether nursery, pre-school, childminder or out-of-hours club - is different and has its own factors to take into consideration when making this important decision. As early years professionals, you know your provision, you know your children and your families, and you know your own circumstances.

What I can say is that I’ve worked in this sector long enough to know that whether you have decided to reopen your doors on 1 June (assuming the government confirms its five tests have been met on Thursday), or to keep them closed for now, you will have done so with the best interests of your children and their families in mind – alongside, and rightly so, your own wellbeing and for those of you working with colleagues, your staff teams.

We will continue our fight for you

And I can also say this: we at the Alliance are still with you, supporting you every step of the way. This is a new and unprecedented situation for us as an organisation too, but we have worked hard to ensure that we are able to give you the best possible support, guidance and advice we can around the clock, to ensure you have all the information you need to make a decision on what is right for your provision – and rest assured that we will continue to do this going forward.

We will also continue to campaign on behalf of the early years wherever and whenever it is needed, whether that be fighting for better financial support, better access to necessary resources and equipment, or simply equal treatment to that of schools. We have never been afraid to speak out for the sector, and now is certainly no different.

I know that these are stressful times and it is easy to get disheartened, especially when it feels like the sector only gets a fraction of the recognition it deserves. Please know that we at the Alliance know how hard you are all working – whether that be efforts to reopen your settings safely to your families, or to continue supporting them in other ways while you remain closed – and we are so proud to represent such a committed, passionate and dedicated sector.

I hope you have all had some time to reflect on everything you have done over the past few weeks and months, and what a key role you are playing in your local communities and beyond. For those of you planning to open next week, I hope you are looking forward to seeing your families again, and seeing in person how your children have grown and developed over the past few months. For those of you remaining closed, I’ve no doubt that you will be keeping in close contact with your families in other ways and ensuring they continue to get the support they need.

Thank you all so much for all you are doing, and continue to do.

With kindest regards,

Neil Leitch
Chief executive, Early Years Alliance