The real problem with UK childcare? Lack of educated staff
The Telegraph | Sally Peck | 24 February 2015
Childcare in England is of such poor quality that the Government has been wasting our money – £5.2 billion, annually, set to rise to £6.4 billion in the next parliament- by subsidising it, according to a report from the House of Lords.
Nearly a third of two-year-olds taking up the offer of free early education (which is extended only to the most deprived children) are doing so at places rated “requires improvement” or “inadequate”.
The report makes for depressing reading in many ways: the stated goal of the tax-free childcare credit and the free hours of nursery care for children is to promote development for all children, to narrow the attainment gap between rich and poor, and to enable parents to work. But the dismal quality of care means that families face impossible decisions in which they must prioritise either their child’s development or their bank account.
