Nursery World - To the point: We must aim high

'Narrowing the gap' has been a central focus of investment in early years, aimed at decreasing the divide in life chances between those children who are the haves and have-nots.

But we will never see the quality of provision that can ensure all children and families receive the early years experiences that can help turn lives around until we narrow another yawning gap - the enormous divide between the role expected of early years practitioners and the ability of the workforce to fulfil it.

For an educator, supporting the learning and development of the youngest children is arguably the most intellectually demanding phase of all. Babies and young children cannot selectively focus their attention on what we might want to teach them, so we need to meet each child where they are and go with them.

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