Findings from a survey carried out by the Early Years Alliance include worrying reports of regression in children’s development, such as losing ‘the ability to play independently’, expecting to be carried when they can already walk, and seemingly to have forgotten how to put their shoes on.
More than half (54 per cent) of respondents said that they observed negative changes in the learning and development of children when they returned to their setting after the first national lockdown (23 March – 1 June).
Personal, social and emotional development, and children’s communication and language were highlighted as areas of concern among the majority of respondents.
The sector organisation surveyed more than 1,300 early years workers in nurseries, pre-schools and childminders in England to look at how the pandemic has impacted the development of children under five, and to what extent this may have affected the gap in attainment between more disadvantaged children and their peers.
According to the findings, 47 per cent of providers believe the attainment gap has grown among under-fives during the pandemic, with 11 per cent saying the gap was ‘significantly bigger’.
Key findings include:
- Around half of early years providers think the gap between poorer children and their peers has widened since the start of the pandemic.
- Six in 10 say fewer children across all backgrounds at their setting are now reaching expected levels of attainment compared to before the pandemic.
- Eight in 10 think the Government is not doing enough to support early years providers to tackle the impact of the pandemic on young children’s learning and development, citing a lack of extra funding.
Fifty-nine per cent of respondents reported that fewer children from all backgrounds were meeting the expected level of early attainment in physical development, communication and language development, and personal, social and emotional development (collectively described as the ‘prime areas of early learning and development’) since the start of the pandemic.
Of those that observed negative changes, around four in 10 (42 per cent) said that these were more evident in children from more economically disadvantaged backgrounds, with 94 per cent identifying personal, social and emotional development and 82 per cent identifying communication and language development as being particularly impacted.
More than eight in 10 (82 per cent) respondents said that the Government is not doing enough to support early years providers to tackle the impact of the pandemic on under-fives, with many citing a lack of adequate financial resources and an inability to invest in extra staff to offer targeted support.
The Government has invested £1.7bn into its education ‘recovery programme’ to date, however, only £10m (0.6 per cent) of this funding is available to early years settings.
Commenting on the survey results, Neil Leitch, Early Years Alliance chief executive, said, ‘The early years workforce is deeply committed to supporting children and families, and has done a fantastic job throughout the pandemic continuing to deliver care and education at great personal risk and with almost no additional support.
‘Practitioners responding to the survey said they know exactly what children at their settings most need to recover lost skills and confidence, and that the only thing stopping them from taking action is a lack of resources. It is therefore vital that nurseries, pre-schools and childminders are given dedicated financial support for recovery, and the autonomy to use it as they see fit.
‘Proper funding would enable the targeted interventions needed to improve children’s personal, social and emotional development alongside their physical development, which many respondents noted have suffered as a result of being cut off from their friends and opportunities to play and explore.
‘Given the proven link between investment in early years and better educational and social outcomes, especially for the most disadvantaged children, a failure to invest now would be unforgiveable.’
Comments from survey respondents
‘Children coming to me for the first time or returning after extended periods with only their parents are clingy, upset and afraid of strangers. They have lost the ability to play independently. They are taking a long time to settle away from their parents. Some have returned with very good literacy and numeracy skills but are nowhere near where they should be with personal, social and emotional development, or physical and self-care skills. They are lacking in gross motor skills because they have been indoors a lot and some who could put on their own shoes before lockdown have forgotten how.’
‘They expect me to pick them up and carry them when they can walk perfectly well. They look at toys and loose parts blankly, with no idea how to explore and use their imaginations. They often ask for the TV or to play with my phone and are confused when I tell them “no”. I worry about what this year has done to their development and how long it will take to make up for lost learning.’
‘The only thing preventing us from delivering all the interventions we would like to be able to deliver is a lack of finances. We are running with the minimum level of staff to meet the statutory requirements, because we cannot afford to pay additional staff. More staff would enable more and more effective interventions which would have a huge impact on the learning and development of all our children but particularly those that are currently underachieving.’
‘There needs to be more money given to early years settings so they can address the gaps in children's learning and the workforce need the same recognition as teachers.’
‘We need more funding and a better understanding in government of what early years is and does. When you hear ministers talk about three- and four-year-olds, you get the impression that they have no understanding of what a child of this age does or is capable of.’
‘As a professional in the early years, it saddens me that we are rarely mentioned as key educators throughout this pandemic. It has also been difficult to access support from external professionals to support children with additional needs and behavioural issues as they are not allowed to visit and it is our policy not to have visitors at this time.’
‘Our children and families need support now. If we do not invest this time and support now, we will see the consequences as these children continue their educational journey.’
