By Shannon Pite
Poor pay and career progression in early years workforce could hamper the expansion of the early entitlement scheme, new analysis by the National Foundation for Educational Research (NFER) has warned.
The government previously estimated that the early years workforce would need 35,000 additional staff between December 2023 and September 2025 to meet the needs of the planned entitlement expansion.
According to the research, while the workforce size is on track to meet the Government’s estimate if the current rates of growth and acceleration in staff numbers continue, then, given the challenges already reported by the sector, reported challenges with achieving the growth so far and further growth may be even more challenging, the trends may not necessarily continue.
The report also highlights that although the target could be met at a national level, there are likely to be regional discrepancies that are not currently being measured by government data.
Jack Worth, NFER education workforce lead, said:
“The early years landscape is undergoing significant changes and increasing pressures. It is critical that workforce challenges in the sector are addressed, so that it can be both attractive enough to recruit new staff and also retain a higher level of staff, to ensure it can meet the demands of the expanded free childcare entitlement.
“Delivering impactful early education and care will give our children the best start in life and support better outcomes. Investment in further research and high-quality data is needed to allow the Government to make effective future policy
Neil Leitch, CEO of the Early Years Alliance, said:
“We welcome the report from the National Foundation for Educational Research and its clear call for the government to go further in supporting the early years workforce by adopting measures that foster genuine career progression and make early years work a viable long-term profession.
“However, we must stress that the growth in workforce highlighted in the report is at real risk if the government continues its longstanding underfunding of the sector. Last year alone, over half of providers surveyed by the Alliance reported that staffing shortages negatively impacted the quality of their provision, and more than three-quarters found it difficult to recruit suitable new early years staff.
“The stark reality is that current early years funding does not cover the true cost of delivering the high-quality care providers strive to offer, often under extremely challenging circumstances. Recent increases in national insurance contributions and the national living wage have not been factored into the latest round of funding, leaving the sustainability of the workforce in serious doubt.
“The sector is facing a severe recruitment and retention crisis. We urge the government to listen carefully to the policy recommendations in this report, to adequately fund the sector, and to provide the recognition that early years professionals rightly deserve.”