Is the plug being pulled on the early years foundation degree? A raft of postings on the Nursery World website forum suggest this could well be the case as local authorities are either saying 'no' to further funding, or are being ominously non-committal.
The withdrawal of funding for those who have at least one year's study under their belt is a body blow. It not only means losing the opportunity to progress to degree level, but losing salary incentives and career prospects.
It also has implications for Early Years Professional Status (EYPS). The early years sector endorsed foundation degree, launched in 2003, has developed as a stepping stone to EYPS. Funding, which has come out of the former Graduate Leader Fund, was typically given by local authorities as a condition - or at least an encouragement - to gaining EYPS.
But this progression is now in danger of being thwarted through lack of cash. One nursery manager in Worcestershire, who pressed for answers on funding from her local early years department, says she was given a straight 'no'. Under the Graduate Leader Fund in her area, candidates were funded for 75 per cent of the course fees, with the proviso that they went on to do EYPS.
She says, 'I have some employees who may not be able to continue with their studies now as they cannot fund themselves, and we are not sure in the current economic climate whether the owner of our business will be willing to pay the approximate £1,200 a year cost for the next two years.
'I have another lady who has two terms left on her degree and she will have to pay the cost, but cannot afford to do EYPS - it is not clear at this stage where funding will come for that, if at all.
'One person left a better-paid job to come to us because we would support him through his degree and now he may not be able to do this, so he will probably be regretting his choice.'
A MIXED PICTURE
The success of the foundation degree is borne out by Thom Crabbe, national programme manager for early years at the Children's Workforce Development Council. He says, 'It is a good badge for those who missed out on gaining higher academic qualifications. It is also integral to EYPS, by providing a bridge for people who want to progress to the status.'
Indeed, as Mr Crabbe points out, these people are 'central to the vision' of the EYP and have demonstrated an admirable commitment to gaining a qualification which, in many cases, reflects hard toil and commitment on top of a day job.
But until the new Workforce Strategy is unveiled, it remains unclear how important the foundation degree will be to any grand plan for skills. The former Graduate Leader Fund, which financed degree-level study, has now been absorbed into the Early Intervention Grant (EIG) and is not ring-fenced. This will invevitably result in a mixed picture regionally, and with some local authorities already having stated they will no longer fund qualifications, including the early years foundation degree, there is genuine cause for concern.
However, the picture is by no means bleak in all areas. In Luton, funding is secured for the next six months and while it is expected to continue beyond that date, the council is not making any firm promises until July at the latest. However, Kathy Sears, Early Years and Childhood Workforce development manager for Sure Start and the Extended Schools team, says that continuing to develop the strengths of the early years workforce is a priority.
She reports that currently, funding has been allocated from the EIG in Luton to support those previously funded through the GLF to finish their next year of study. In effect, this means all those on the programme will have their course fees met in full from the first six months from the guaranteed funding.
'Unlike the GLF, this will not be passported to settings but will be paid directly to training providers, and there is an incentive to develop an incentive payment from the next funding pot which will also reimburse supply costs. But this can only come about if the second pot of money is realised post-July,' says Ms Sears. 'However, we will not at this point in time be able to fund any new starters under the graduate programme.'
With Luton focused on the 'grow your own graduate' approach, the foundation degree has been very important to raising the bar.
'It has helped to provide a staged approach to higher education that may not otherwise have been available to these learners, and has helped to ease them through experience,' says Ms Sears. 'Ultimately, all who signed up for the GLF agreed to work towards EYPS as a condition of funding.We have funded 90 individuals through differing pathways. We would expect by October to have confirmed around 20 as EYPs who are still working in settings, while 27 will be confirmed as having completed their BAs in early years or childhood and adolescence, with a further 43 engaged on either year two or three of the programme. Along with this we will possibly have lost four on the way due to life circumstances.
'All we can do at this stage is continue to support them to complete the graduate status, as there is little clarity from the Government on its workforce agenda or priorities.'
FUTURE PROOF
Sarah Lambert, head of Early Years and Childcare at Blackpool Council, reports that students on foundation degrees are also continuing to receive funding from the EIG.
'The foundation degree is viewed positively, as it is a good step for people who have not previously undertaken much academic study,' she says. 'We currently have 41 individuals who are at various stages of undergoing the course in Blackpool. We do try to encourage the step on to EYPS and ask this at the interview prior to acceptance of funding.'
Ms Lambert places a high value on learning and remains hopeful that graduate aspirations will be realised. 'The proof will be in the continued support and funding from central government,' she says. 'This should be reflected in the new EYFS inspection regime. It also needs to take account of the fact that private providers, especially, say they cannot afford an EYP without putting their costs up to parents, which is not a good way to go.'
TALK TO YOUR COUNCIL
While the benefits of the foundation degree are widely recognised, can it deliver career opportunities in its own right?
Luton's Kathy Sears doubts it. 'Unless it is attached to money, it is unlikely to find its way into an advertisement, job description or person specification. We have seen no posts in Luton requesting this level of qualification.'
Ms Sears also feels that in the absence of payscales, prospects for salary rises are limited. 'We have the potential now where we have EYPs working for £13,000 a year as a pre-school leader; equally, we have daycare owners probably reaching £32,000, so in many ways we have an even wider gap than we had before,' she says.
'We now have graduates working for the same wage they were on as Level 3s.
'There also appears to be an emphasis on the conversion of alternative degrees to create MAs with early years specialisms, and it will be down to each local authority to decide how it may, or may not, want to promote a graduate-led workforce.'
Influencing local authorities about how they distribute funds is something the National Day Nurseries Association is urging its members to do. Chief executive Purnima Tanuku says, 'Local authorities are of course under financial pressure, and it is important that nurseries are pro-active in influencing the spending of funding, for example being active in local nursery networks. It is also important to understand that although the money is not ring-fenced, all local authority decisions are subject to "local challenge" - so if the money is being spent on areas it is intended for, you can highlight how and where you believe it is being spent. The EIG is a new way of funding a range of areas, so it is important that nurseries get involved in understanding what is happening with this.'
In the meantime, nurseries may be forgiven for fearing the worst. Foundation degree students will face sleepless nights until they find out whether funding will enable them to continue with their studies and ultimately realise their dreams.
RAISING STANDARDS
Jill Lakeman, early years advisor at Southampton City Council, provides her professional view on how early years foundation degrees have been integral to the rise in quality and standards in Southampton.
'Many of our most experienced practitioners undertook the degree and went on to gain EYPS.
From talking to graduates it is clear that they feel it has given them the ability to be self-reflective, to understand the "why" behind what they were often doing instinctively and has increased their confidence and competence in working with young children.
'I feel this has also enabled them to embrace new learning and has led to an enthusiastic take-up of initiatives like Developmental Movement Play (Jabadao) and Every Child a Talker. We now have a group of expert practitioners who support their peers by becoming early language lead practitioners for ECaT, for instance.
'In Southampton, higher qualifications of practitioners has been one of the criteria for accessing a higher level of funding through the Single Funding Formula. Those lead practitioners or curriculum leaders in settings with a full degree gain a higher hourly rate per child for their setting and those with foundation degrees are also rewarded in this way.
'It is particularly important in areas like Southampton where levels of deprivation are extremely high (50 per cent of birth-to-five-year-olds live in the 30 per cent most deprived areas in the country) to have a well-qualified workforce to achieve higher standards for our children. Although we have raised EYFS profile scores annually for the past four years, they are still below national average.
'Early years has been fortunate in Southampton in that Southampton City Council still views early years as a priority and has continued to fund the Graduate Leader Fund and, through bursaries, the foundation degree.
Currently there are 90 practitioners being funded by bursaries in this way and there is a commitment to enable them to complete their course.
Funding is allocated on an annual basis. The "sign up" for new candidates for the foundation degree cannot help but be affected with the uncertainty about future funding, and this is also reflected in cuts in the numbers of universities offering the course.'
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