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Childcare funding must double to achieve high quality

EMBARGO FOR 00.01 17/11/09

CONTACT: DAYCARE TRUST PRESS OFFICE, 020 7840 3350, OUT OF HOURS 07736 311 082

Childcare funding must double to achieve high quality

Daycare Trust, the National Childcare Campaign, will this week publish ground-breaking new research with the defining high quality childcare and setting out how much it will cost to fund its roll-out across England.

‘Quality Costs: Paying for High Quality Early Childhood Education and Care' is the culmination of a year-long research project in which Daycare Trust worked with the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) and the Social Market Foundation (SMF) to identify the necessary elements required for early childhood education and care to be of ‘high quality', and to cost a high quality model for England. The final report is accompanied by five working papers. For details see notes to editors below.

Key findings:

• The key driver for quality is investing in the workforce. This means qualified staff, a lower staff turnover and higher pay.
• Full daycare and sessional settings need substantial increased investment to enable them to meet the requirements in the high quality model, whereas ‘Maintained' (i.e. State operated) settings require less additional investment as their staff are generally more highly qualified.
• Current staff:child ratios are adequate for high quality provision in the majority of settings when combined with well qualified staff, although higher ratios may be required in disadvantaged areas.
• If fees were increased overnight to cover the costs of better qualified, better paid staff, parents would have to increase their contribution from £2.6bn per year to £4.9bn per year.
• Without reform of Government subsidies for Childcare it is highly unlikely that parents could afford these levels of increases.

Daycare Trust recommendations:

• Spending on childcare must double from the current £4.4bn to £9.4bn, taking spending up to approximately 1% of GDP, in line with OECD recommendations.
• The free childcare entitlement must be increased to 20 hours per week for three and four year olds and 15 hours for two year olds.
• Staff qualifications in the sector must increase:

o For children aged two and over half of staff must be graduates (Level 6 qualified) and the rest Level 3 qualified (A-Level equivalent).

o For children under two, one third of staff as graduates (Level 6 qualified) and the rest Level 3 qualified (A-Level equivalent).

• Reform tax credits so the poorest parents can claim up to 100% of the costs of childcare rather than the current 80% and remove the work test from the childcare element to better target those in the poorest households.
• Introduce a quality premium payment for places for children under the age of three, as otherwise many of their parents would be priced out of the childcare market.

Daycare Trust joint Chief Executive Emma Knights said:

"The Government deserve enormous credit for increasing spending on childcare, therefore allowing more parents to work and improving educational outcomes for the poorest children. But if the Government are to achieve the vision they set out in their ten year Childcare Strategy then our research shows that a step change is needed in terms of investment to achieve high quality provision.

"Of course it's difficult to argue for increased public spending on early years during a recession, but we when you consider that this country spends £23.4bn per year on Higher Education and £30.1bn on Secondary schools, is it not right that we should invest an additional £4.2bn in early years, where research shows that high quality education and care can make the most difference in a child's life?"

Daycare Trust Senior Policy Office Kate Goddard said:

"Our research has shown that despite increased investment, we still spend a relatively modest amount on early childhood education and care in England. We entrust our children to childcare workers everyday, and we must acknowledge the importance of their work in the outcomes of our children. That's why we have to raise the professional status of the workforce through increased qualifications and better pay and conditions".

Ends.

NOTES TO EDITORS

An Executive Summary of the report is attached.  

‘Quality Costs: Paying for High Quality Early Childhood Education and Care Final Report Kate Goddard and Emma Knights, Daycare Trust

The final report is accompanied by five working papers:

• Working Paper 1: What is high quality early childhood education and care? Maxine Hill and Emma Knights, Daycare Trust
• Working Paper 2: What is the cost of quality? Sandra Gruescu, Social Market Foundation
• Working Paper 3: What do parents pay? Kate Goddard, Daycare Trust
• Working Paper 4: International comparisons of high quality early childhood education and care Sandra Gruescu, Social Market Foundation
• Working Paper 5: Funding options for high quality early childhood education and care Mike Brewer, Institute for Fiscal Studies

Media requests for free previews of the research will be considered on a case by case basis.  

The Nuffield Foundation is a charitable trust with the aim of advancing social well-being. It funds research and provides expertise, predominantly in social policy and education. It has supported this project, but the views expressed are those of the authors and not necessarily those of the Foundation. More information is available at www.nuffieldfoundation.org

Daycare Trust is the national childcare charity, campaigning for quality affordable accessible childcare for all and raising the voices of children, parents and carers.  We advise parents and carers, providers, employers, trade unions and policymakers on childcare issues.  We recognise that everyone is unique and we value difference in our communities.  We listen to all views and are committed to act without prejudice. 

Daycare Trust runs an information line (08458 726 251) on Monday, Wednesday and Friday from 10am-5pm. Parents can also visit www.daycaretrust.org.uk for information.

Daycare Trust is a member of the Campaign to End Child Poverty, http://www.ecpc.org.uk/.

For further information, contact press office at Daycare Trust on 020 7840 3350, ext 217 (out of hours 07736 311 082).

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