Teach Early Years - Issue 14.2

Teachearlyyears.com 11 A year ago, I would have said the sector was feeling cautiously hopeful that with a new government in place, substantial change was coming. And while it would be wrong to say nothing has improved during those 12 months, the truth is we’re still a long way away from where many of us had hoped we’d be. Credit where it’s due: the publication of the Best Start in Life strategy was incredibly welcome, and as an organisation, we at the Alliance were pleased to see several measures that have the potential to improve conditions for early years settings and our all-important educators. But, as is so often the case with government policy, the devil will be in the detail, and it remains to be seen whether the positive rhetoric will be matched by the necessary substance to make these improvements a reality. The government’s mission to “break down barriers to opportunity” is undoubtedly a good one in principle, but as things stand for the sector – between chronic underfunding, the impact of increased National Insurance contributions, and the severe recruitment and retention crisis – and despite the unrelenting commitment of providers to deliver the best start in life for each and every child, the fact is that it’s becoming increasingly difficult for settings to keep their doors open, let alone offer fair and equal opportunities to all families. What’s more, given the current shape of early years policy in this country, I have to ask: how likely is it that we will ever truly break down barriers to opportunity within the existing early years system? It is widely accepted that the first five years of a child’s life are critical for their long-term learning and development. It’s no exaggeration to say that getting it right for a child in their early years can change their whole life. Why is it, then, that early entitlements, and almost all current offers, are targeted at “working families”? Early years is an integral part of the education system, as the government has rightly recognised it to be by creating the role of Minister for Early Education – and yet, we all know that if what was written on a parent’s wage slip determined access to primary or secondary education, there would be a public outcry. But somehow, in the case of early years education, this is deemed normal. Just last month, the New Economics Foundation published a report showing that of the households included in their research, only 11% of the poorest households will be eligible for the full expanded hours compared to 85% of the richest households. Meanwhile, the latest Department for Education statistics show that the number of two-year-olds registered for the disadvantaged early entitlement is down almost 20% from 2024, making it the lowest uptake in the statistical series. Added to this, the Education Policy Institute recently found evidence of growing attainment gaps in early years education, particularly for children from more disadvantaged backgrounds, noting that 40% of the gap at age 16 has already emerged by age five. Clearly, without a significant change of approach, early years policy is at risk of embedding, rather than tackling, inequality. There is a wealth of research showing that children from more disadvantaged backgrounds stand to gain the most from access to quality early education and care. It is incumbent upon the government, therefore, to ensure its policies are centred around those children and families who stand to benefit the most, rather than exacerbating the disadvantage gaps we are already seeing across the early education system. This means more than just making ad hoc improvements to the current system. It means imagining a whole new system. I’ve seen first-hand how high- quality early years provision helps to build character, to instil confidence and create self-belief. I believe every child deserves the opportunity to benefit from this – but unless we are willing to rethink our entire approach to early years access, these barriers to opportunity risk growing increasingly difficult to break down. Visit eyalliance.org.uk NEIL LEITCH IS CEO OF THE EARLY YEARS ALLIANCE Those who need high-quality education the most are missing out, says Neil Leitch … “We need a whole new system”