Support for employer-assisted childcare is a key plank in the Government's raft of family friendly policies aimed at encouraging parents into work and enabling employers to retain high-calibre staff.
Although employers can help their staff with their childcare in several ways - for example, by providing a workplace nursery or by contracting directly with a childcare provider - vouchers have become the most popular form of assistance. However, while more and more employers and their staff are enjoying the benefits that come with vouchers, the early years sector is struggling with the bureaucratic burden of processing them.
'A typical nursery can be redeeming vouchers from as many as a dozen different companies,' says Purnima Tanuku, chief executive of the National Day Nurseries Association. 'And each one has a different system.
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