Is the league table plan unfair?

YES: Purnima Tanuku, chief executive, National Day Nurseries Association (NDNA)

The Department for Education has announced that all schools' childcare options are to be listed alongside performance tables.

This move is puzzling to NDNA and many other people in the sector.

At the time, the then childcare minister Sam Gyimah said he wants parents to be able to see what's available from schools - including full-time nursery, holiday and after-school provision.

But such listings would only show a small proportion of all the childcare options available to them.

And it would put schools at an unfair advantage against other providers, by being more visible and somehow more "official".

Private and voluntary nurseries and childminders offer the majority of places for under-fives in the UK. Parents need to know about all of these worthy and enriching places that their children could potentially attend.

The government realises this. In a seemingly separate piece of work, the DfE is currently tendering for a one-stop-shop website and app that will list all childcare options, public and private.

This is a much better offer. NDNA says scrap the school listings and concentrate on the catch-all, parent-friendly app that will list everyone equally.

Besides, the full picture is much more sophisticated than a simple school-based provision versus "others".

Public and private sector lines are blurred. Schools and independent providers are increasingly forging their own links and working together in dynamic ways to offer childcare solutions to working parents. There are lots of private and voluntary day nurseries on or very close to school sites.

NDNA is also keen to avoid a situation whereby parents think they have a better chance of getting their children into the school of their choice at reception level if they attend the pre-school there.

Legally, they don't – unless they meet admission code criteria such as the Early Years Pupil Premium. That in itself is another problem and could lead to parents feeling pressured to choose the school nursery above other options, perhaps needlessly moving settled children to a different setting.

We're asking for all providers to be treated fairly by the government and be given the same chances to attract attendees.

The likelihood is that whichever government that runs our country next will need to rely on more and varied provision than schools alone can provide.

Schools already have enough on their plates; plenty of pressure on all aspects of their provision and performance. The politicians could let private nurseries take some of the strain.

The range of UK childcare options is rich, diverse and constantly evolving. When the whole picture is considered, it is clear that a listings system for schools provision only is no use at all.

NO: Natasha Porter, deputy head of education, Policy Exchange

Expanding early years provision was a major part of all three main parliamentary parties' manifestos. And increasingly, the focus is shifting from just providing more places towards ensuring that they are also of a high quality and cost efficient. Encouraging the expansion of early years provision within existing schools addresses all three of these concerns.

In terms of cost, the practical benefits of using school premises adds efficiencies that other settings are unlikely to have. The premises already exist, and staff and overall structures can develop on the back of some existing frameworks and provision of, for example, insurance and energy. Substantial efficiencies therefore can come from opening new provision where supporting infrastructures already exist.

Ease of access is another benefit when early years provision is located within the school - it is obviously more practical for parents when they have a single location to drop children off in the mornings.

For vulnerable children, this also makes the school transition much less traumatic, and means early years practitioners can ensure children are school ready as they will have a clearer understanding of exactly what that means if they are constantly engaging with a primary setting. It also offers a chance of joining up any family interventions in one setting.

The likely quality of school-based nurseries also makes them an ideal solution. Although the quality of early years provision is improving, there is still a stubborn attainment gap between children in the most deprived and other areas.

It makes sense that school-based nurseries specifically would have the potential to perform to a high standard as they are surrounded by a high-quality graduate teaching workforce, are able to plan jointly with schools and can provide a continuity of setting in the transition to school.

Although there was a 12 per cent increase in school-based nurseries between 2011 and 2013, 54 per cent of primary schools still do not have any nursery provision, and this needs to change.

The Department for Education's proposal that schools list their accessible childcare provision is a nudge to make sure parents are aware of options and consider which childcare setting best meets their needs. But it doesn't go far enough in incentivising schools to build their own nursery space.

To get this to work, there needs to be more capital funding for primary schools to create space for early years provision. It is also important to note that these centres don't have to be run by schools - there are excellent examples of private, voluntary and independent providers working in partnership with schools, and indeed setting up their own schools.

With the need for more good early years settings, alongside the need for financial prudence in public sector spending, moving more new provision into existing primary schools is the obvious solution for any incoming government.