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Pandemic hit early education of disadvantaged children hardest, research finds

2 mins read Early Years Coronavirus
“Considerably more” children from ethnic minority and disadvantaged backgrounds have missed out on formal early learning during the Covid-19 pandemic compared with their peers, new research has found.
Children from minority ethnic backgrounds or areas of high disadvantaged are most likely to have missed out on early education, researchers say. Picture: Adobe Stock
Children from minority ethnic backgrounds or areas of high disadvantaged are most likely to have missed out on early education, researchers say. Picture: Adobe Stock

The number of children attending early childhood education and care settings in autumn 2021 dropped to 90 per cent of expected levels based on pre-pandemic patterns, a study on the impact of Covid-19 on early education reveals.

Latest local authority figures, published by the Department for Education, continues to show “substantial variation” in attendance rates among different local authority areas, the report Implications of COVID for Early Childhood Education and Care in England, funded by the Nuffield Foundation, states.

“Attendance was lower than expected in areas with large ethnic minority populations, deprived areas, and areas with high unemployment rates. Conversely, attendance rates were higher in local authorities that were less deprived, had higher rates of development amongst two- and five-year-olds and had higher rates of female economic activity and lower unemployment rates,” it adds.

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