During a debate in the House of Commons on 27 November on the problem of the bureaucratic burden faced by pre-schools and nurseries, David Cameron, Conservative MP for Witney in Oxfordshire, said settings in his constituency provided a 'magnificent service for children, parents and the wider community'. But providers had told him that they were having to spend more time on paperwork than with the children and that often they were taken away from childcare to fill in forms.
Mr Cameron said, 'Pre-schools have to draw up dozens of policies and procedures. Though some may have only 20 or so children, they are required to have, at last count, 20 policies and four procedures, including policies on record-keeping, equal opportunities, behaviour management and much else.'
In response, Maria Eagle, work and pensions minister, said the Government took concerns about over-regulation in the sector seriously. She added, 'It is not the aim of Government to bury teachers or pre-school staff in paperwork. That is not the main job that they seek to do or the main job that we want them to do.
'They have a legitimate concern that paperwork will take them away from their primary function of looking after the needs of young children. It is not in the Government's interest to increase the amount of paperwork and restrict the teaching and childcare that take place.'
Mr Cameron expressed surprise that Ms Eagle had been asked to represent the Government in the debate, given that there are five education ministers in the Commons. Ms Eagle pointed out that in the House she is the minister who deals with Sure Start, early years and childcare. 'That recent change was announced at the time of the spending review, along with many other announcements, so I do not criticise him for not spotting it,' she added.
