Nursery World - A good investment?

What are the implications of recent research for investment in childcare, ask Vidhya Alakeson

Last month, researchers published new findings looking at the impact of the introduction of the free entitlement for three-year-olds on children's development at age five, seven and 11 and on the likelihood of mothers working. The research compares mothers and children in areas with more free entitlement places to those in areas with relatively few.

The most striking finding and one that shapes everything else is that only a small percentage of children accessed childcare because of the free entitlement. About 40 out of every 100 three-year-olds were benefiting from free early education in England before the free entitlement policy was introduced and of the remaining 60 of 100, 50 were using childcare paid for by their parents. For the vast majority, then, the policy did more to help their family finances by shifting costs previously paid by parents onto Government than it did to open up access to childcare.

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