It is not surprising that the decision to stay with NVQ 3 for persons-in-charge, managers, supervisors and deputies, and NVQ 2 for 50 per cent of other staff, has been released quietly. Such shameful lack of ambition and vision is nothing to be proud of. It only betrays vulnerable children and families.
This retrograde step actually devalues the hard-earned qualifications of all of us and traps an army of unqualified workers in the daycare sector - along with children. Is this planned by the same Government that talks about 'Education, education, education' and lifelong learning? Where is the joined-up thinking here?
But we should have expected it once we saw the smacking and smoking signals. After all, consultation is just a cynical game - a bit like the eleventh-hour declarations of admiration for the value and cost-effectiveness of maintained nursery schools.
Perhaps we should put these points to the prospective MPs we will be meeting on our doorsteps and in our villages and towns in the coming weeks. Hurrah for the hustings!
Marian Whitehead, Norwich, Norfolk
