Nursery World - Analysis: 2010 General Election

With the General Election set for 6 May, Nursery World takes a look at the main political parties' stance on the provision of quality, effective early years education. The eight parties, representing the UK, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland, were questioned 'on their vision in any future government' by the organisation Early Education (www.early-education.org.uk), which published their answers in its latest member newsletter.

CONSERVATIVE PARTY

Good pre-school education delivered by well-trained staff can make a real contribution to a child's life. In those pre-school years, every child needs support to build their cognitive development and social skills.

A great deal has been done to increase the number of pre-school places and that could only be achieved because of the dedication of the early years workforce. Now the challenge is to build on this to ensure the quality of provision is consistent and at the level we know to be beneficial for children.

The evidence shows that sometimes quality can be a concern, especially in the most deprived areas, where we know that pre-school education can make the most difference. A high-quality workforce is critical. Yet only seven per cent of the workforce has had the opportunity to put in place post-secondary qualifications.

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