Italiana
Mon 12-Nov-12 15:52:51
It has just been announced that childcare will be deregulated via the Children and Families Bill
Government 'plans to deregulate childcare' in children and families bill
By Gabriella Jozwiak, Monday 12 November 2012
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Childcare regulations may be relaxed by an amendment to the children and families bill, CYP Now has learned.
Deregulation could mean ratios of childminders to children would decrease. Image: Martin Figura
Decreased ratios of staff to children and lower qualification requirements could be included in the legislation, according to a source working closely with the coalition government’s childcare commission.
The source said a “form of deregulation” would be added to the bill that would affect childminders and group level childcare providers, but they were unsure about the exact form the deregulation might take.
The early years sector has expressed concern at the proposal, which follows suggestions for deregulation made by children’s minister Elizabeth Truss earlier this year.
“Any form of watering down of regulation and ratios or qualifications can only be damning to good quality early years childcare,” said Denise Burke, director of United for All Ages and the Good Care Guide.
“If we were talking about taking away some of the burden of registration and paperwork required for inspection, that would be a good thing, but if we’re talking about regulation on ratios or dumbing down of qualifications, that would be a very bad move.”
Parliament is expected to introduce the bill in January 2013, meaning any amendments would have to be announced before that date.
The National Childminding Association's (NCMA) director of professional standards, Stuart Turner, said he hoped this would provide an opportunity to debate the amendment before it becomes law.
"As our members are very concerned about possible changes to childminding regulations and ratios in England, if the rumours about the bill are true, NCMA would welcome the scrutiny that a parliamentary process would ensure," said Turner.
June O’Sullivan, chief executive of the London Early Years Foundation, said she was unsurprised by the suggestion.
“Our minister is quite determined to take this through even though I don’t think the sector is supportive of this and I don’t think it’s in the sector’s interests,” she said, referring to Truss.
Truss has suggested adopting a model of childcare regulation similar to that used in the Netherlands in a paper for the think-tank Centre Forum.
“There is a political drive for this in terms of trying to make childcare more cost effective, but it may well prove to be more costly as it did in Holland,” continued O’Sullivan.
The Department for Education has been contacted for a response.
Strix
Wed 21-Nov-12 11:37:16
I think children are silly, and that is good. Foolishness of a trivial nature, with an element of humour. My toddler is often silly. He makes us laugh, and then he laughs with us. That is what silly really means.
HolyBrrrrrrBatman
Wed 21-Nov-12 13:03:08
'Children should not be punished'
Do you believe adults should be punished? If adults should be punished when they're naughty, at what age should that start? 12, 18, 21? Do you think that it would come as quite a shock to realise that bad behaviour carries a punishment?
OFSTED have no nutritional guidelines or standards.
To be clear, Ofsted don't have ANY guidelines or standards. They simply inspect and enforce according to the regulations that are laid down by government. The regulations that are laid down are mostly about being a "suitable person" (e.g. CRB check, training), limits on numbers and on education (the EYFS). Not nutrition, or even childcare (education is NOT childcare).
If you don't like the EYFS, it is the Department for Education that you need to take this up with. If you want standards on nutrition or childcare you need to lobby government for them.
The thing I find absurd about the EYFS is that it was a way of formally spelling out what good, involved parents do with their children in a domestic setting. The idea was that that model would be carried into institutional settings such as nurseries and daycare so they were replicating what went on in homes.
Why do you say that, I don't think that it is true at all, in fact I think the opposite is true: the EYFS aimed to look at best practice in an institutional setting.
ZuleikaD
Wed 21-Nov-12 13:19:27
I was told that on my EYFS training course when they were going through where it had come from and the logic behind it.
Strix
Wed 21-Nov-12 15:03:53
Mr a, the point on my nutritional requirements was that OFSTED and I am not aligned on what is important. So is it right they have so much control and I have so little.
I'm not sure their current (large) scope brings value to the table. I think their powers are too many and a bit of deregulation might be a good thing. I would need to know more about what the proposals actually are. But I suspect I might support them, especially if they involve a reduction the powers OFSTED currently have, and all too often abuse.
I was told that on my EYFS training course when they were going through where it had come from and the logic behind it.
Sounds to me like the trainer was telling you what you wanted to hear to get you to buy in to it 
As I understand it the EYFS was mostly developed from the Curriculum Guidance for the Foundation Stage which was the previous guidance for nursery schools.
Italiana
Thu 22-Nov-12 07:30:55
Abslolutely correct Mr Anchovy...I can see a copy of the Curiculum Guidance on my shelves!!!...now I am losing th will to live!!!
Strix
Thu 22-Nov-12 08:08:13
Careful, Italiana, you can get your childminding registration snapped away in the blink of an eye for that sort of talk.
ZuleikaD
Thu 22-Nov-12 09:22:14
Sounds to me like the trainer was telling you what you wanted to hear to get you to buy in to it ... the EYFS was mostly developed from the Curriculum Guidance for the Foundation Stage
WEB of LIES!! 
The parents are generally happy with school discipline. The intake includes children from a wide range if backgrounds with suffering expectation if behaviour, it is useful for the school to be clear about their expectations. There are also complex reward systems for achievement and good behaviour.
Anyway the point I was trying to make us that you can call it whatever you want but the small children quickly catch on its for 'naughty' behaviour. Not just mine who hear the word at home but those from very laid back homes and homes where no English is really used too.
