Nursery World - Early years quality must not be sacrificed for vote-winning headlines

We are at risk of going backwards on the successes of early years policy without a joined-up government strategy, particularly as the effects of Covid hit, argue Beatrice Merrick and Nathan Archer of Early Education

Beatrice Merrick, chief executive of Early Education

There has been much to celebrate over recent years in relation to securing cross-party acknowledgement of the importance of early childhood education. With 93 per cent of three- and four-year-olds taking up their 15 hours per week of early education, this is close to becoming a truly universal entitlement.

But COVID-19 shows the fragility of these achievements. During lockdown, even many vulnerable children and children of critical workers who could have continued to attend a setting did not. And although the early years is theoretically now open to all children, as of the start of July, attendance was only 23 per cent of the number who would usually be attending, rising to 30 per cent in state-funded nurseries and 40 per cent in reception classes.

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