Nursery World - Editor's view (368)

1.5bn a year is a huge sum of money, and Gordon Brown's doubling of the childcare budget in last week's spending review is probably more than most interested parties had dreamed of (see News, page 4, In my view, page 34). The planned network of children's centres, bringing together childcare, education, family support and health services under one roof, is something that groups such as the Daycare Trust and Kids' Clubs Network have been lobbying for. And the joined-up approach is mirrored in the creation of a new inter-departmental unit covering childcare, early years education and Sure Start, headed by Baroness Catherine Ashton. It seems that finally the need for a fully integrated strategy has been recognised.

The planned network of children's centres, bringing together childcare, education, family support and health services under one roof, is something that groups such as the Daycare Trust and Kids' Clubs Network have been lobbying for. And the joined-up approach is mirrored in the creation of a new inter-departmental unit covering childcare, early years education and Sure Start, headed by Baroness Catherine Ashton. It seems that finally the need for a fully integrated strategy has been recognised.

So there's plenty to feel good about, but plenty also to reserve judgement on until further details are forthcoming. We need to know how the new children's centres will be funded, and how long that funding will last. We need to know how and where the extra 250,000 childcare places will be created. Most of all, we need to know where the trained staff can be found.

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