Nursery World - Call for new framework for babies and toddlers

A children's charity is lobbying for a new early years framework to cater specifically for babies and toddlers under three, amid concerns that children do not receive the right care in nurseries to form attachments with key workers.

WATCh (What about the Children?) says that group daycare in its current form is important for three-and four-year-olds, but wants a new framework designed for babies and toddlers.

The charity also claims that its research shows that parents often also overlook the importance of attachment when choosing childcare.

WATCh carried out two separate surveys with mothers of under-threes earlier this year, and found that a third of the mothers polled said that 'social and educational opportunities' were more important than 'a close and loving bond between child and carer' when looking for childcare for their children.

Around half of the mothers surveyed - 840 in total - used some childcare, with the majority of under-threes cared for by grandparents or other family members and a third in nursery settings.

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