NDNA warns over 'light touch' school regulation

Purnima Tanuku, chief executive of NDNA, told a committee of MPs scrutinising the Small Business, Enterprise and Employment Bill that allowing schools offering free childcare to two-year-olds not to register with Ofsted as early years providers could see children’s needs going unmet.

During a committee hearing, Tanuku said of the proposals: “This provision, which will include the most disadvantaged children, could be established and operate without the quality assurance of expert early years scrutiny by Ofsted.

“Very young children have specific needs which early years staff are trained to deliver. It cannot be assumed a school performing well in primary education will provide good or outstanding care and education for very young children.”

She added that if schools were unwilling to operate by the same registration and inspection requirements as childcare providers delivering free care for two-year-olds then they should not offer places under the government-funded scheme.

The NDNA is calling for the proposal to be removed from the bill.

Currently, all early years settings providing care to under-threes have to be registered with Ofsted’s early years register, which requires them to comply with the requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage curriculum.

Under the free childcare scheme, 260,000 two-year-olds from the most disadvantaged families are eligible for 15 hours of free care per week.

Earlier in the year, Ofsted chief inspector Sir Michael Wilshaw called for an increase in the number of free places provided by schools to help tackle the attainment gap between disadvantaged children and their better-off peers.

In addition, Tanuku welcomed the proposal in the bill to introduce a small business appeals champion that would review appeals from providers against Ofsted judgments and assess the fairness of complaints. However, she added that its powers should be extended to scrutinising and overturning flawed regulatory decisions.