Sector reaction to the Labour Party’s proposed review of early education has on the whole been favourable. But at the moment, we don’t know the timescales and the review itself doesn’t exist as a document for public consumption.
One of its stated aims is to remove restrictions on local authorities when it comes to opening nursery provision. Can this be interpreted as an intention to start investing in maintained local authority nursery schools? This would be an important step towards addressing the problem of lack of provision in disadvantaged areas.
It is increasingly feared that the Government’s plans for the expansion of subsidised childcare will widen the gap in quality between different local areas, fuelling even greater inequalities.
As the LGA pointed out back in the summer, with councils responsible for directing the majority of childcare spending under the new offer, their role will become even more critical in managing the market. They will need more muscle, with stronger powers for commissioning provision centrally to ensure that it is available in the right places. This could include the ability to withhold free entitlement funding where a provider wants to open in an area where there is already plenty of provision.
But will they be up to the job?
The LGA’s latest research suggests not, with its acknowledgement that councils are ‘firmly in the eye of inflationary storm’. Its analysis shows that by 2024/25, cost and demand pressures will have added £15 billion (around 29 per cent) to the cost of delivering council services since 2021/2022 – and that is on the basis of current service levels. With services set to be ramped up, this is yet another acute financial challenge the Government must address, and one which will directly affect our sector’s future health.
