The petition was launched after the government announced plans to alter staff:child ratios for two-year olds from 1:4 to 1:5, and was debated after it had gathered more than 100,000 signatures.
Some 13 MPs attended the debate, with many echoing a number of concerns from parents, childcare professionals and early years organisations, including risks to child welfare and the potential impact on workforce retention.
Catherine McKinnell, Labour MP for Newcastle North and chair of the Petitions Committee, opened the debate by saying the current childcare system is “broken”, and cited experts’ concerns that relaxing ratios will put children at “unacceptable risk”.
At the @UKParliament debate on @TOSFoundationUK’s staff:child ratios petition, @CatMcKinnell opens, saying: “our childcare and early years system is broken”.
Register Now to Continue Reading
Thank you for visiting Children & Young People Now and making use of our archive of more than 60,000 expert features, topics hubs, case studies and policy updates. Why not register today and enjoy the following great benefits:
What's Included
-
Free access to 4 subscriber-only articles per month
-
Email newsletter providing advice and guidance across the sector
Already have an account? Sign in here
