When Government Pretends to Listen: The Early Years Inquiry

It’s almost funny — if it weren’t so serious.

The government has just launched its Call for Evidence on Early Years. They’re asking for views
on workforce capacity, access and affordability, and quality and outcomes.

But here’s the thing: we’ve been telling them the same things for over ten years.

Professor Cathy Nutbrown said it in her 2012 and 2013 reviews. Every early years leader has said
it. Every provider, childminder, and nursery manager has said it. Recruitment is in crisis. Funding is
too low. Staff leave for jobs in supermarkets because the pay is better and the stress is lower.

And yet here we are again — being asked the same questions, as if nobody has been paying
attention.

The Obvious Correlation

You don’t need to be an economist to see the problem: if you underfund a sector, you won’t
retain staff.
The government’s own National Audit Office has admitted they calculate “free childcare” funding
based on a break-even point — which means there’s no headroom for better pay, training, or quality
improvements. And break-even assumes every single nursery runs at maximum ratios and minimum
wages. That’s not “support for children.” That’s running nurseries like budget airlines.

So why act surprised when nurseries close or when practitioners leave? It’s the most predictable
outcome imaginable.

Price-Fixing the Sector

The inquiry asks whether there is “the right mix of provision in local areas.” The answer right now is “barely” — and the government is about to make it worse.

By forcing every type of provider — childminders, private nurseries, voluntary settings — to deliver at a fixed, below-cost rate, they are wiping out diversity. Small, specialist, or outdoor-led settings cannot survive under this model. You can’t price-fix everything and still expect quality and choice.

It’s like expecting an artisan bakery to sell bread for supermarket prices. Or asking a Michelin-star
restaurant to charge the same as a Wetherspoons. The end result isn’t “value for money,” it’s a race
to the bottom.

Recruitment? What Recruitment?

Recruitment and retention are on a negative trajectory — and everyone in the sector knows why.

• It’s considered a low-status job, despite being the most important stage of education.
• There is virtually no pay progression.
• It’s physically and emotionally exhausting.
• Running a small nursery is no longer a viable business model.

The government has created a system where the message is: “This is babysitting, not education. And it’s free, so it has no value”. And then they’re shocked when ambitious, talented people don’t want to do it.

The Result for Children

This isn’t just about adults’ pay packets. It’s about what children experience every day.

When nurseries are underfunded, they operate at maximum ratios, staff are overstretched, and quality suffers. Children get less one-to-one time, less support with speech and language, and less opportunity to explore outdoors.

And here’s the tragic irony: the government says it wants 75% of children to reach a Good Level of Development by 2028. That won’t happen in a system running on the absolute minimum.

What Needs to Change

If the government genuinely wants to “give every child the best start in life,” here’s what they
should do — and we’ve been telling them this for a decade:

• Double the funding rates. Pay properly for what high-quality early education actually
costs.

• Stop calling it childcare. Call it Early Childhood Care and Education. Give graduate
practitioners the title of “teacher.”

• Let providers thrive. Stop interfering with what childminders and nurseries can charge if
they won’t pay a realistic rate.

• Value outdoor provision. Children need far more physical play until age 7 — stop forcing early years settings into school-like models.

Will They Listen This Time?

We will respond to the Call for Evidence, because we care deeply about children and families. But
we know how this usually goes:

• We write carefully worded submissions.
• The evidence is published.
• The recommendations are made.
• And then… nothing really changes.

So yes, we will tell them again, and so should all settings.

You cannot run an education system at the cheapest possible rate and expect the best outcomes.
It’s time to invest in the early years like children’s futures depend on it — because our children and parents deserve the truth and a better chance at receiving real childcare