Please find below a comment from Neil Leitch, CEO of the Early Years Alliance, on the news that the latest wave of the government’s early years recruitment campaign – Do Something Big – will focus on increasing the number of men working in the early years sector.

Neil Leitch, CEO of the Early Years Alliance, said:

“The early years is where our future citizens are nurtured and created, and anyone who understands children and child development will know that this important work belongs to everyone, not just women. As such, we welcome the government’s efforts to attract more male early years educators into the profession.

“That said, as we have always argued, improving recruitment into the early years can only ever be part of the picture, and much more must be done to ensure we are able to retain quality early years staff if we are have any chance of tackling the workforce crisis once and for all. With government-funded places set to account for as much as 80% of early years provision once the entitlement expansion is fully rolled out, this means ensuring that early years settings receive the level of funding needed to pay staff wages that reflect the vital role early educators play in a child’s development.”