Their 'wait and see' reaction suggests they have been reassured by the appointment of Maggie Smith, a former director of children's services for the charity Barnardo's, as head of the Directorate. Before the appointment was announced, concerns were raised over the advertisement for the post, which did not state that early years experience was a requirement.
The then chief inspector of schools, Chris Woodhead, stoked up the controversy further with a letter to the House of Commons education and employment select committee which said the major requirements of the post were 'management experience and expertise', which had been given 'clear priority' over early years experience. However, the chosen candidate, Ms Smith, did have a strong early years background.
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