Letter to the Editor: Young people in spotlight need protection

The story about Paris Brown, Kent’s youth police commissioner, illustrates that when a local public body promotes a youth participation scheme to the media, it can expect to be subject to public scrutiny and needs to be prepared for that.
 
They also need to ensure good support is there for the young person or people involved. While the British Youth Council provides national support, resources and shares good practice, it believes that the role of local youth workers and youth participation specialists is critical if we are to support young people who are committed enough to come forward into the public eye on behalf of their peers.

More young people will realise from this incident that their Twitter and Facebook life can become a matter of public record. Future schemes need to learn from this experience, especially when it comes to the recruitment or election of young representatives.
Rosina St James, chair, British Youth Council

Government must go further on childcare
Pacey wants to echo Cathy Nutbrown’s comments on More Great Childcare. While the document includes some positives for childcare professionals and the children they look after, it misses a number of important opportunities to improve the quality of childcare that children receive. Furthermore, its proposals to change ratios and introduce childminder agencies are likely to reduce quality for children.

Pacey contributed to Nutbrown’s review last year, both as part of her working group and the co-production group that advised her and the Department for Education on her recommendations.

We welcomed these recommendations wholeheartedly at the time, because they clearly set out how everyone working in childcare and early years could be supported to deliver high standards of care and learning, through the formal process of qualification requirements and ongoing CPD support.

However, the response the government has made to these proposals do not go far enough and Pacey will be raising these concerns on its members’ behalf both in future meetings with the DfE and via our consultation responses.

Catherine Farrell, joint chief executive, Professional Association for Childcare and Early Years (Pacey)