The recent foot-in-the-mouth comments by Suffolk MP Dr Thérèse Coffey, saying that the Government’s flagship 30-hours policy ‘is largely based on the premise that the 30 hours equivalent … is split into 15 hours of education provision and 15 hours of general childcare without a specific educational focus’, made me chuckle.
I am sure the sector’s reaction to her comments have brought into sharp focus just how many dissatisfied groups there are. It seems a bit misguided to relentlessly annoy the very people you rely on to make your policy work.
I know we are all feeling a bit peeved at having to deliver everything for nothing and do it without negatively impacting the children who should be a the heart of the debate. Apart from underlining how little is understood about the importance of the early years, it shows so clearly that we are often seen as a baby-sitting service.
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