MNHQ here: seeking your views on 'school readiness' and early education for a debate in Westminster Hall

Government needs to look at what research tells us that young children actually need. The fixation on academic results actually results in poorer outcomes (and I mean academic outcomes) because poorly socialised children don't learn well. Two year olds don't need to be in nurseries. They need to be exploring and playing with loving interested primary carers. Recent stress on funding nursery places has resulted in parents who think their children 'should' be in institutions. No-one seems able to see the bigger picture.

And yy to less stress on coding and decoding (reading and writing) More attention to the harder stuff about how writers make stories and characters would be better for most children's outcomes long term.

And much much much more play from reception/y1 onwards.

*What has made the greatest contribution to your child’s development in their early years?
Open-ended play and a small forest school setting that does not consider their role as being 'school readiness' as with other preschools attended previously

*What support could the government give you as a parent to improve their learning and development at home?
For all parents to take the pressure off expecting children to read and write. To understand that this will come in time. To allow CSA starts for younger /summerborn children so as to promote this ethos

*What would you like to see in the government’s workforce strategy for early years education – do childminders and nursery staff need greater training to deliver healthy development? Do they need specific qualifications?
Forest school training, mindfulness, mindset...

*Do we need a syllabus or targets in early years education? Would you support testing or any other measures to gauge attainment?
NO NO AND NO. To push for children to start formal academic learning much later, 6 years old rather than 4 years, and for learning until then to be play based. This can still be rigorous but ultimately will allow children to develop more fully. The current system pushes out independent thinking and learning and reduces self-control and confidence by pushing children too much too soon.

*What has made the greatest contribution to your child’s development in their early years? - being lucky enough to stay home with my children - my summer born son will be starting school at Compulsory school age. The government need to fix it so that all children can choose to start at csa without then missing a year of their education

*What support could the government give you as a parent to improve their learning and development at home? - financial assistance to remain at home caring for your own children - not closing all the childrens centre and reducing their resources - let summerborns start in reception at compulsory school age

*What would you like to see in the government’s workforce strategy for early years education – do childminders and nursery staff need greater training to deliver healthy development? Do they need specific qualifications? - yes - more training in outdoor play (forest school) and open ended resources - plus the resources and funding to offer children free play in nature - more training in the law regarding the rights of children to start education at csa

*Do we need a syllabus or targets in early years education? Would you support testing or any other measures to gauge attainment? - NO forget the testing and let children be children. Learning through play does not need a curriculum or testing

Webber institute - any info on this school would be gratefully received? We have sold out house in London and heading to the Bedfordshire area...and really like Olney. We are going independent and also looking at the Bedford area to live and for schools.

These questions make me nervous, it seems like its looking at trying to counteract some perceived underachievement or tackle feckless parenting or make sure everyone goes back to work .

OF MOST BENEFIT TO MY CHILD
being with me, a primary caregiver who gives a shit, has my sons best interest at heart and had a child because i wanted to raise it not for any other reason. Attention and places to go that are free - public transport prices are the biggest barrier to this.

WHAT SUPPORT COULD THE GOVERNMENT GIVE TO SUPPORT
Make it financially viable for someone on a low income to be a SAHP (like the care allowance for elderly), not just a privilidge of the rich but with compulsary attendance at local parent groups for socialisation and guidance and to stop pisstaking.

NURSERY AND CHILDMINDERS
Nothing needs doing, less paperwork and more play (look at Montessori success), it should be about feeling secure and confident and more play. Parent to be seen as childminder, why pay someone to look after your child funded by government while you go to work?

EARLY YEARS AND TESTING
No more testing !!!!! let them play and learn, let them become emotionally secure before reception and they will find it much easier to learn. A happy child is someone who will learn more.

SIDE NOTE: Nothing you do will improve the situation of those children whose parents do not want to make an effort, regardless of social background or finances. They will still need more help at school and school can only do so much.

Sort out the Nursery education grant ("free" 15hrs ha ha) funding so that it is actually available to all families. Where I live it is so hard to access due to the horrendously poor funding level that most children cannot benefit from it. Doubling it to 30hours is meaningless.

NO TESTING

improve funding for childrens centres.

Health visiting resource needs to be increased .
We are only able to offer 5 contacts a year to a universal family
Some children are not ready for school FACT . This tends to be in areas of social deprivation .
Children are not spoken to or stimulated let alone-taken anywhere . This is not a priority when day to day families are struggling to put food on the table ./ domestic violence / drug / alcohol misuse .
The 2 year pupil premium and access to high quality nursery setting . School setting being the most preferable is key to reducing inequality .
For my family me being at home and the children being able to access outstanding school nursery provision In my area was crucial to school rediness.

Questions
*What has made the greatest contribution to your child’s development in their early years?
Parents, a shared nanny, a well staffed nursery

*What support could the government give you as a parent to improve their learning and development at home?
Keep children's centres- essential at the start to keep parents sane, then to provide information and a space for children outside the house
More leave- Swedish approach
*What would you like to see in the government’s workforce strategy for early years education – do childminders and nursery staff need greater training to deliver healthy development? Do they need specific qualifications?
Higher staff to child ratios
*Do we need a syllabus or targets in early years education? Would you support testing or any other measures to gauge attainment?
No, definitely not

Greatest contribution: me being able to work part time.
I have taken them to mother and toddler groups, swimming, story times in the library, out for dog walks, done jigsaws, cooking, read stories, and they've also had to do normal things like shopping which I think is important. The 30 hours free care won't work for us - it feels as though it's about trying to force me back to work full time not about what is best for my children. I would have preferred to get 15 hours from earlier, so I could have had an easier first few years working part time and still spending time with the girls. As it is, it's been very difficult to afford to work part time, until now when my youngest daughter is entitled to her free hours (turned 3 in April, just after the start of term, so we've had a term when she's been three that I haven't been able to claim help with), and now she will get far more hours than I want, which we won't use, because while she is pre-school I still think some time at home with me is important.

I don't need much from the government, except maybe dropping the rhetoric about getting women back to work. How about choice? If people choose to work full time, brilliant. If they choose to work part time, that's brilliant too. And it's equally brilliant if they choose to look after their own children. But there seems to be a lot of talk about the choice to go back to work and no talk at all about the choice to stay at home, and therefore all the support is aimed at getting people back to work (closing sure start centres etc so there's no support for someone who is at home). It feels like it's more about getting me back to work so I can pay taxes.
Qualifications? Yes, but. It so much so that it's off putting for someone who has a vocation to work with young children. Qualifications do not make up for the ability and desire to work with kids.
Testing? Bloody hell no. We already test far far too much far too young. I want staff to be able to spend more time just playing and less time worrying about box ticking. More testing at such a young age would, for me, be a reason to keep kids at home more, to stop unnecessary testing regimes. Children develop at such different rates, comparisons with some kind of national norm is daft, and labels kids far too early. Let them just be kids.

These questions make me a) want to cry and b) fear even more for our young children. What are we trying to do to them?

In answer:
What has made the greatest contribution to your child’s development in their early years?
Their parents. Who are interested, engaged and involved. Who talk to them, and read to them, all the time, and listen too. Who are able to provide them with rich and quality experiences (& I'm not talking about chucking loads of money at them, but doing a wide variety of things together). DH and I both work - I'm lucky enough to be part time - and the childcare we chose has provided them with a nurturing environment so that they feel safe and secure. In short, high quality bonding with their parents (& other childcarers).

*What support could the government give you as a parent to improve their learning and development at home? Yes to libraries and children's centres. Also improvements in parental leave & pay to allow more flexible arrangements longer term than the first year or so.

*What would you like to see in the government’s workforce strategy for early years education – do childminders and nursery staff need greater training to deliver healthy development? Do they need specific qualifications?
Well if you are going to expect further qualifications, then I assume they will command higher salaries. Many parents already struggle to afford childcare so how would this be accommodated? Because families could not afford higher costs. Childcarers are already paid too little for the vital job they do. And there are already issues with providing the 15 hrs free preschool EDUCATION (note - not childcare) as it is (providers not paid enough for it)...this is only going to worsen when it increases to 30 hours.

A focus on nurturing and secure bonding, rather than 'education' is crucial at this age and should be the emphasis.

*Do we need a syllabus or targets in early years education? Would you support testing or any other measures to gauge attainment?
Well - this already exists with eyfs & all the checks etc children are subject to. However, in terms of introducing more - Absolutely not. There is already far too much testing of children. Weighing something does not make it fatter. Children need time to play. Certainly at preschool age, play is all they should be doing. There is time to learn formal things later. The early years need to be about developing secure individuals so children are best places to learn later on.

What has made the greatest contribution to your child’s development in their early years
Mine are older now but for me the best thing for them was time at home with a parent.
My experience of nursery staff is that this is seen as an easy career / training option for less able girls who are often disengaged with education.
So for me early years "education" seems to come from those who are less well educated themselves.

*What has made the greatest contribution to your child’s development in their early years?

Lots of time spent sharing books 1:1, talking, exploring, lots of varied play experiences especially outside, lots of adult attention within the context of close relationships, encouragement to learn to take some risks and handle feelings and mistakes.

*What support could the government give you as a parent to improve their learning and development at home?

• Understand that relationships come first in early development and all brain development comes from that root, and those relationships need protecting. Otherwise prepare to put a whole lot more cash in the child mental health budget and PRUs for children who don't feel safe enough or able to cope with the demands of school.
• Understand that play is hard core learning - and that is free child led play, not structured, targeted, assessed, action planned, quality assured play
• Open libraries with rhyme time sessions and story telling
• Re establishing children's centres especially in rural areas
• Stop building over all green spaces so that there are places to walk, run around and play that haven't been worthily organised, limited, polished and National Curriculumed to death by the LA as all the parks have.
• Increase the number of nursery nurses on Health Visitor teams who can offer home visits to help parents wanting support with behaviour and play
• Massively increase the number of paediatric speech therapists so the waiting list is a couple of weeks instead of six months and providing individual assessments and group therapy instead of a ten minute group assessment and leaflets (even for children with severe need)

*What would you like to see in the government’s workforce strategy for early years education – do childminders and nursery staff need greater training to deliver healthy development? Do they need specific qualifications?

They have specific qualifications. Many have degrees. In my area we have some truly amazing quality professionals in nurseries and preschools running around in circles trying to cope with areas of severe deprivation and high needs with resources being cut further every year and a (pointless, unhelpful) paperwork burden that is burning them out.

The two dedicated government funded groups of early years specialists offering ongoing training in my area were all made redundant and replaced with massively reduced opportunities for continuing professional development. Theory in EY training is also usually stuffed with government initiatives, targets and new requirements that costs the children adult time and attention.

*Do we need a syllabus or targets in early years education? Would you support testing or any other measures to gauge attainment?

Do we need it? We already have it! It's bureaucracy heavy and doesn't focus nearly enough on key developmental milestones that are achieved through PLAY and free interaction over time with sensitive, available adults. We need a whole lot less of the huge amounts of generated paperwork where there is a photograph of an eighteen month old with paint on their hands beside a list of EY Curriculum points the professional knew but has wasted their time hunting up and recording on paper in order to demonstrate that painting has educational relevance and they weren't wasting the child's time.

No, testing is NOT necessary. We are going to see the fall out in a few years time of galloping reception children into writing sentences before they have letter formation fully pinned down and haven't got the physical development or play skills under their belt sufficiently to discriminate between sounds and shapes. Rather like the introduction of the numeracy hour taught flashy splinter skills but ended up with children failing because they hadn't had the time to gain the basic foundations of those skills first (gained through practical play experience and interaction with adults.)

I was afraid this was the way things would inevitably go with the pushing up of expectations in reception, that the next step would have to be 'preparing' children in early years settings. It will be a huge mistake. The priority of many parents for EY childcare is that their child will be happy, their child will be safe, their child will be loved and well cared for, have the adult support and interaction they need and will enjoy themselves.

Training for nursery / early years professionals in caring for LAC/adopted children, making adjustments for those children's needs - single most needed thing in my experience. Nursery was a constant struggle where I was essentially training them in attachment needs for children who've experienced trauma and neglect. Entering school, where the teachers had been fully trained and just "got it" was an amazing relief. The materials are all there (Sutton Trust early years toolkit etc) - no-one seems to make private nurseries access it...

I think we start education way too young in this country, and the focus is pure box ticking and allowing patents to go back to work. After much research we home educate.

What has made the greatest contribution to your child’s development in their early years?
Being able to be at home with them so they do not need to enter 'education' too early.

What support could the government give you as a parent to improve their learning and development at home?
Better libraries, open more often.

What would you like to see in the government’s workforce strategy for early years education – do childminders and nursery staff need greater training to deliver healthy development? Do they need specific qualifications?
Anyone taking care of young children should be highly qualified and treated with the respect that should be afforded to those charged with our most precious assets. And paid accordingly.

Do we need a syllabus or targets in early years education? Would you support testing or any other measures to gauge attainment?

NO! We have too much testing already. Children need time to develop without boxes to fit into.

Questions
What has made the greatest contribution to your child’s development in their early years?

The sacrifices we've made so that I can stay home. Nothing beats 1:1 from the primary caregiver

What support could the government give you as a parent to improve their learning and development at home?

Improve support, financial and social, so that more parents have the choice to care for their own child/ren. I don't want them at nursery all day, I want to meet other parents at places like SureStart centres and allow my children to choose their own friends and activities

What would you like to see in the government’s workforce strategy for early years education – do childminders and nursery staff need greater training to deliver healthy development? Do they need specific qualifications?

They need decent pay and respect. Childcare is not the career to shove underachieving 16 year olds into because society wants them in college instead of tackling the reasons that's unachievable

Do we need a syllabus or targets in early years education? Would you support testing or any other measures to gauge attainment?

Fuck off. Just fuck off with that one. After the debacle that is SATs what on earth make you think that more testing could be something other than a disaster?

Interesting questions. My biggest worry about the increase to 30 hours is the huge financial pressure this will put on nurseries, and good resources are essential to provide quality care.

To answer the questions:
*What has made the greatest contribution to your child’s development in their early years?

A really excellent ofsted outstanding nursery which focussed on play based learning, had more staff than the required ratios, and amazing facilities both indoors and out. They are at risk unless the 30 hours is properly funded

Plus - a supportive employer who allowed me to work part time, enabling me to have a big role in my sons life and take him on adventures/ follow his interests

*What support could the government give you as a parent to improve their learning and development at home?

Sure start centres etc with good activities
Lots of well resourced libraries with decent opening hours and trained staff
Subsidised entry to museums etc

*What would you like to see in the government’s workforce strategy for early years education – do childminders and nursery staff need greater training to deliver healthy development? Do they need specific qualifications?

Possibly, but this shouldn't be too prescriptive.

*Do we need a syllabus or targets in early years education? Would you support testing or any other measures to gauge attainment?

No!!!! I would pull my children out of nursery and quit my job if I thought they were going to be tested / constrained by a "syllabus" whilst at pre school!!

What has made the greatest contribution to your child’s development in their early years?
Time spent together. Been able to take him to brilliant activities including those provided by the brilliant local children's centre.

*What support could the government give you as a parent to improve their learning and development at home?
Longer maternity leave.

*What would you like to see in the government’s workforce strategy for early years education – do childminders and nursery staff need greater training to deliver healthy development? Do they need specific qualifications?
No, current training is good. And specific qualifications is a bad idea, it will prevent good staff members from being able to get a job. Trying to recruit graduates is also a poor idea whilst pay is so low.

*Do we need a syllabus or targets in early years education? Would you support testing or any other measures to gauge attainment?
No! I have a summer born, 2 weeks before September. He will be bottom of the class. Testing him in comparison to his classmates would be cruel. He will develop in his own time, and trying to force a young child to meet a syllabus or targets is only going to make children who aren't ready yet hate education.

What has made the greatest contribution to your child’s development in their early years?

books and time to play and experience 'life'

*What support could the government give you as a parent to improve their learning and development at home?

as many others have said, funding for libraries, children's centres, and children's health.

*What would you like to see in the government’s workforce strategy for early years education – do childminders and nursery staff need greater training to deliver healthy development? Do they need specific qualifications?

unless pay is going to be massively increased to make it a career attractive to graduates, then personal skills are as important as specific qualifications. On the job training should be increased to encourage good practitioners to stay in the industry.

*Do we need a syllabus or targets in early years education? Would you support testing or any other measures to gauge attainment?

there is already EYFS, NO FURTHER TESTING is necessary

What has made the greatest contribution to your child’s development in their early years?

Me, being able to afford to be a SAHM for those first years. Very hard to achieve with financial and social pressures to return to work (not valued by society as a SAHM).

What support could the government give you as a parent to improve their learning and development at home?

Help support parents to stay at home during those early years if they wish and make being a SAHM be seen as an important role, not as not contributing to society. Also more involvement from health visitors as a constant source of advice during the first 4/5 years, not just there only if you have serious issues. I would also like there to have been free parenting/child psychology courses available to all.

What would you like to see in the government’s workforce strategy for early years education – do childminders and nursery staff need greater training to deliver healthy development? Do they need specific qualifications?

If I had had to go back to work, I would definately want those looking after my children to be qualified, even a childminder. There appear to be too many childminders who are only in the job as it is the way they can afford to be a SAHM to their own children, rather than being skilled and able. And nursery staff are so poorly paid that the job doesn't necessarily always attract the best people, just those who aren't able to do anything else. There are of course childminders and nursery staff who see it as a vocation and are passionate about their jobs as well. But until the job is well paid and valued, you won't always attract the best.

Do we need a syllabus or targets in early years education? Would you support testing or any other measures to gauge attainment?

NO!! However, I think that is would be useful to have screening to pick up those who aren't developing "normally". So those whose speech skills, motor skills or social skills are below the average ability range for their age. Children under 5 don't need "education" and testing, but I do think that they should be screened for issues that will prevent them being able to learn once they are at school. And by screening, I don't mean a checklist sent out by the health visitor with no help or follow up whatsoever. If issues are picked up at this early age, intervention should be started immediately- no waiting lists for years.

Q1 - just to disagree slightly with everyone else, nursery has been fantastic for making them slightly more independent, do messy play I wouldn't dream of doing at home and give them food I wouldn't cook.

Q2 - stop closing children's centres and libraries. Send all hv on a "how to speak to adults without patronising them" course.

Q3 - the staff at dc's nursery are a good mix of qualified level 3 and training. As long as the room managers are qualified, I think it's more important for the junior staff to be enthusiastic and full of energy!

Q4 - no, that would be mad. Because your average 3yo will happily count to 10 on Monday but refuse to even identify 2 buttons on Tuesday. The continuous observation done in line with the eyes is more appropriate.

• talking All the time by myself or grandparents contributed most to my child's development
• repetition to learn: songs, counting
• an emphasis on confidence
• I think nursery ratios are great at the moment and the organisation of a good one is excellent but they are super expensive
• I personally think I pad time is vastly overrated but this is my opinion and not based on anything

Questions
What has made the greatest contribution to your child’s development in their early years?

My eldest was able to get a swift referral to the local child development centre thirteen years ago. We had a wonderful community paediatrian who was able diagnose why he was not walking and talking and organise the right help.

What support could the government give you as a parent to improve their learning and development at home?

Restore the health visiting service. Better support for mothers with postnatal depression. If a mother is ill then she cannot support a child's learning and development. Even if the child is in daycare 50 hours a week there are still 164 hours in a week. It's essential that parents are medically fit to look after children.

What would you like to see in the government’s workforce strategy for early years education – do childminders and nursery staff need greater training to deliver healthy development? Do they need specific qualifications?

Yes, having the right qualifications is more important than ratios for the over threes. School nurseries provide better outcomes because activites are planned by a qualified teacher . We need to differentiate between education and childcare. I feel that childminders and nursery nurses should provide wraparound care for school nursery once the child is three.

Do we need a syllabus or targets in early years education? Would you support testing or any other measures to gauge attainment?

We need better monitoring of development. I would like dedicated mother and toddler groups for families whose parents have developmental concerns. Even if a child has no developmental issues the mother might have anxiety and needs help. The developmental checks that existed in the past were often dependent on how the child performed in a short period of time. A specialist toddler group would enable health professional to get to really know a group of families and see what their play skills are like.

And what backforgood said.

What has made the greatest contribution to your child’s development in their early years?

A secure, predictable, loving environment.
Interaction through talking, stories, singing, play and socialising.
Being educated parents interested in education.
Playing outside.
Clear boundaries.
Opportunities to experience different environments.

*What support could the government give you as a parent to improve their learning and development at home?

Better pay for parents at home prior to 3 years.
Support parents who are not sure how to interact with their child positively. A family daycare arrangement.

*What would you like to see in the government’s workforce strategy for early years education – do childminders and nursery staff need greater training to deliver healthy development? Do they need specific qualifications?

Yes they should be trained as much as possible in language development and play techniques. There should be less time spent on observing and assessing and more on playing and interacting with the children.

*Do we need a syllabus or targets in early years education? Would you support testing or any other measures to gauge attainment?

The activities in early years should be planned to be interesting and varied and promote language, physical development and social interaction in the children. This needs the staff to be well trained and well paid.

Staff should also be trained in how to spot signs of a range of specific difficulties from physical to language to social and how to talk to parents about that with advice for next steps and ensure appropriate plans are in place to support those children. Other than that scrap assessment. It is obvious to school staff where children are developmentally within a couple of days; they don't need a pile of notes and observations. They just need information relating to any form of SEN or safeguarding concerns.

*What has made the greatest contribution to your child’s development in their early years?

1:1 time together. Time spent sharing books, shared experiences - baking, trips to the park, imaginative games, days out together and all the time talking & asking questions

*What support could the government give you as a parent to improve their learning and development at home? An option to further extend mat leave as I gave up a well paid career to become a sahm after my second child was born.

*What would you like to see in the government’s workforce strategy for early years education – do childminders and nursery staff need greater training to deliver healthy development? Do they need specific qualifications? I believe there needs to be someone on the Nursery staff with higher qualifications and with greater knowledge of child development to guide the rest of the staff.

*Do we need a syllabus or targets in early years education? Would you support testing or any other measures to gauge attainment?
A suggested syllabus & guidelines maybe but PLEASE no testing!!! This is a completely farcical idea.