Commons Sense

House of Commons · Westminster Hall

Early Years Childcare: Staff-Child Ratios

14 November 2022 · 9 other contributors · 15,214 words

Opened by Catherine McKinnell Lab Newcastle upon Tyne North

Responding minister: Claire Coutinho

Children & Families

Summarised by AI from the official record, so it can contain mistakes.

Read the full transcript on Parliament.uk

At a glance

Catherine McKinnell raised concerns about early years childcare: staff-child ratios in Westminster Hall. A government minister responded.

Key points

  • Catherine McKinnell highlighted a petition with over 109,000 signatures against reducing childcare staff-child ratios.
  • McKinnell expressed concerns that relaxing regulations could put children's safety at risk and harm their development.
  • McKinnell asked the Government to confirm the impact of proposed changes on children's safety, learning, and special needs groups.

Key requests to Government

McKinnell asked the Government to confirm that relaxing childcare ratios would not put children at risk or harm their learning and development. She questioned whether they had assessed the impact on children with special educational needs and disabilities and those from disadvantaged backgrounds, and if they still claim that changes will save families £40 a week.

How the debate unfolded

MPs spoke in turn to share their views and ask questions. Here's what each person said.

Opened the debate

Catherine McKinnell Lab Newcastle upon Tyne North

Catherine McKinnell highlighted the petition by Zoe and Lewis Steeper, who started it after losing their son Oliver due to an incident at his nursery. Over 109,000 people signed the petition against reducing childcare ratios as proposed by the Government. She expressed fears that relaxing regulations would put children's safety at risk and harm their development. McKinnell also noted concerns about the potential impact on staff recruitment and retention, highlighting a survey showing eight in ten providers struggle to recruit staff, with over a third of the workforce considering leaving due to stress.

Other contributors (9)
  • David Simmonds Con Ruislip, Northwood and Pinner

    Discussed the importance of recognising that childcare ratios are not a simple science but involve managing risk. Emphasised the need for flexibility in funding distribution to support qualified staff recruitment and retention. Highlighted the direct correlation between early education investment and long-term educational outcomes.

  • Helen Hayes Lab Dulwich and West Norwood

    Expressed concerns about the government's consultation proposals to relax staff-to-child ratios in early years settings, citing issues with quality assurance standards, cost for parents, and potential risks to safety and inclusivity. Quoted statistics indicating high childcare costs and workforce challenges.

  • Justin Tomlinson Con Swindon North

    Expressed concern about the impact of changing staff-child ratios in nurseries, citing difficulties with recruitment and retention of qualified staff. Highlighted the importance of maintaining quality childcare by keeping current ratios and emphasized the financial pressures nurseries face due to low pay and increasing national living wage. Suggested exploring an independent review on funding for childcare providers from 2017 and advocated for consistency in Ofsted inspections, fair business rates between standalone and school-based nurseries, and better support for special educational needs provision.

  • Munira Wilson Lib Dem Twickenham

    The hon. Member for Newcastle upon Tyne North is making an excellent speech, adding condolences to the parents of Oliver Steeper who are present. She points out that 86% of providers say Government funding does not cover their costs and suggests changing ratios will not help affordability or improve learning outcomes.

  • Robin Walker Con Worcester

    Agrees with the importance of a functioning early years system, highlights challenges in retaining early years professionals due to wage competition from local supermarkets. Calls for more investment in professional development and workforce strategy.

  • Siobhan Baillie Con Stroud

    She has been campaigning on childcare for a long time, addressing issues such as the high cost of childcare and the need to reform the childcare element of universal credit. Parents in the UK currently spend 26% of their household budget on childcare, compared to an OECD average of 10%. She is concerned about changing staff-to-child ratios due to workforce issues and wants to see evidence on safety impacts and potential cost reductions for parents. She highlighted that England's current ratio requirements are stricter than in other countries but questioned whether a relaxed ratio would enable providers to care for more children without hiring additional staff, considering space limitations.

  • Steve Brine Con Winchester

    Stresses the importance of quality over quantity in early years education, citing high costs for parents and concerns about reducing staff-to-child ratios. Raises issues regarding safety, additional needs support, staffing challenges, and potential economic impacts.

  • Tulip Siddiq Lab Hampstead and Highgate

    The hon. Member acknowledges the bravery of Oliver Steeper's parents in attending the debate, raising concerns about the physical danger to children from increased staff-to-child ratios. She also highlights the mental health impact on vulnerable young people due to pandemic-related stressors, citing a concern expressed by a constituent child psychotherapist.

  • Vicky Ford Con Chelmsford

    People in Chelmsford want outstanding childcare and are concerned about the safety of their children. The speaker also highlighted the importance of considering the investment in qualifications when comparing international ratios, advocating for a level playing field.

Government Response

Claire Coutinho

It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Ms Harris. I thank the hon. Member for Newcastle upon Tyne North for opening this important debate on behalf of the Petitions Committee. Before I respond, I extend my gratitude to Zoe and Lewis for starting the petition. I send you my deepest sympathies. The Members who spoke in this debate are some of the most experienced on this subject in Parliament, and I have been having conversations with some of them for years. We can be proud of the standard of childcare in this country; 96% of our early years childcare providers had been judged good or outstanding at their last inspection. The Government is working to provide more flexibility and autonomy to the sector through a consultation that closed in September, which will include changes to ratios for two-year-olds and flexibilities for childminders when it comes to siblings and related children. We have also published dedicated food safety guidance for practitioners and are increasing the number of early years providers with paediatric first-aid training. The Department is spending an extra £180 million on qualifications and training, aiming to give 10,000 more staff the latest training in early communication in language and maths over the next two years. We are funding the ability of 5,000 early years practitioners to gain an accredited special educational needs co-ordinator qualification and have rolled out NELI, the Nuffield Early Language Intervention, to two thirds of primary schools. The consultation will look at the impact and set out that evidence alongside the results of our consultation.

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