A report called Creche Barriers, published by the think-tank Demos in January, suggested that partnerships tended to be bureaucratic and unwieldy. It argued that they should be strengthened, while a new national Childcare Development Agency should be set up to oversee growth and a single national Childcare Fund should be set up to channel the various sources of funding to applicants.
Baroness Ashton was due to speak at a seminar about the Demos report at London's BT Centre last week, but was unavailable to attend so her views were conveyed by Alan Cranston, head of the Department for Education and Skills' early years and childcare unit. He said the Government 'wasn't ruling out changes over time', but added that 'energies are often better spent concentrating on the services'. Partnerships had been productive to date, but there was 'scope to learn from what is not being done so well'.
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