Nursery World - Opinion: To the point - Why it's not about men

We should value our work for its own sake, says Julian Grenier

I fear that the recent publicity drive by the CWDC has done little to argue the case for getting more men to work with young children. I agree with the aim of a more balanced workforce, but the discussion makes me uncomfortable.

The first and most obvious argument is that children in nurseries need male role models. Personally, I have never much liked this 'role model' argument. It implies that a man working in a nursery is not simply there as a member of staff: he must represent men and masculinity in general. Yet many men who work with young children would feel uncomfortable about this. Some may wish to be there to play football, make things out of wood and have fun playing superheroes; some may not. Equally, there are many terrific female nursery staff who do all these things with children, and more.

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