Recruitment issues could put the brakes on the government’s ambitious plans to expand free childcare, a charity has warned.
As the Department for Education has today extended the free childcare entitlement from 15 to 30 hours for families with children between nine months and three years old, the National Foundation for Educational Research suggests that the sector continues to face “substantial recruitment and retention challenges”.
In October 2024, the government estimated that the early years workforce would have to grow by 35,000 between December 2023 and September 2025 to meet the needs of the planned entitlement expansion.
The number of staff delivering funded childcare in nurseries grew by 18,200 this year, according to the DfE, the highest increase on record.
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The NFER argues that if the current rate of growth in recruitment continues, then the workforce size is on track to meet the government estimate.
However, many providers have reported difficulty in recruiting and retaining staff, citing barriers such as higher employer national insurance costs and many potential candidates being put off by low pay.
The NFER also points out that within the profession, there is limited opportunity for pay progression because providers’ budgets are stretched, meaning staff with different levels of qualifications and experience can receive similar salaries.
In 2022-23, early years workers earned 36% less on average than other workers who have similar characteristics and working patterns, the research charity said.
Half (49%) of early years workers agree there are opportunities for career progression, compared to 57% of workers on similar wages and arrangements.
The turnover rate in group-based providers is twice that of school-based providers, its report found, at 16% compared to 8%.
Higher-qualified staff tend to have lower levels of wellbeing than their less qualified colleagues, although wellbeing overall is high, the NFER said.
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 decisions.”
Announcing today’s extension of the free childcare entitlement, the government cited a recent survey from Coram showing that childcare costs for families accessing free hours have more than halved.
It claims that the entitlement will save parents £7,500 per year, per child.
Education secretary Bridget Phillipson said that expanded access to childcare would give the UK economy a “huge boost”.
“And this is just the beginning. My vision for early years goes beyond this milestone. I want access to high-quality early years for every single family that needs it, without strings and without unfair charges. Over the next few years, that is my commitment to parents,” she said.
The NFER has three recommendations for the government in its report:
- Implementing policy proposals on early years professional development and career pathways to upskill the current workforce
- Government and providers work together to emphasise the sense of fulfilment childcare workers can get from a career in the sector
- Upgrading sources of data and research on the early years workforce, including a large-scale survey of early years staff to understand the pressures placed upon them.
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