She states in her Nursery World column (see page 12), 'I hope that many providers will continue to choose to be part of the free entitlement scheme, offering a fantastic service to all families. But I accept that, for some, delivering the free entitlement may not fit within their business models and they may decide to opt out.'
Responding to Ms Teather's comments, Neil Leitch, chief executive of the Pre-school Learning Alliance, expressed concern over the minister's 'sense of ambivalence' about the issues around the application of the free entitlement. He said, 'The aim of the free entitlement is one the Alliance fully supports. However, universal free early years entitlement will not be served if confusion around funding issues results in the reduction of free provision available, as this would remove parental choice, particularly from disadvantaged families.
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