Opinion: The Minister's view - Working towards high quality childcare for all

In July, my department published lots of research reports covering all angles of early years, from barriers to take-up of childcare to the impact of care on children.

We already know, from data and experience, that good quality early learning and childcare gives children the best possible start in life and can have a big impact on their development. The data published last month further highlighted this, showing that settings rated poor, and even those rated satisfactory by Ofsted, have no impact on a child's development.

I know you all work hard to drive up standards in early years education, and further research tells us that standards and the ensuing impact on children are improving. However, we need to make sure that all children, particularly the most vulnerable, have access to early learning and childcare of the highest quality. We have reaffirmed our commitment to ensuring that only settings judged good or outstanding by Ofsted and local councils will be able to provide the free entitlement for two-year-olds from September, and I see this as a really important step in improving outcomes for disadvantaged children.