Increase in pre-school entitlement

Fiona Hyslop, the Cabinet Secretary for Education and Lifelong Learning, has announced an increase in the entitlement to free pre-school education from the current level of 412.5 to 475 hours per year. In pre-school centres providing daily 2.5 hour sessions this means an increase in funded pre-school education from 33 to 38 weeks. It is expected that all eligible children will receive the additional free entitlement from the start of the academic year 2007/08.

Previously all local authorities provided 38 weeks of provision in their own settings, in other partner provider settings funding was generally only provided for 33 weeks, the shortfall being picked up by providers and/or parents. It is expected therefore that the increase will involve increasing payments to partner providers to ensure all children receive the full 475 hours of free provision, and to reflect the changes to the advisory floor for commissioned pre-school places which is £1550 for the session 2007/8 an increase of 24% on the previous level of £1250. The £1550 represents the level of cash payment that authorities should make to partner providers and this should be over and above any other additional training or support in kind that is provided to partners. The Executive emphasises that the £1550 is a floor level and expects that local authorities to take local economic conditions in to account when setting the level of payment to partners. The increase is intended to support further investment in staff in partner provider settings. and to lift the quality of provision.

It was one of the new Executive’s manifesto commitments to increase access to teacher involvement in early years settings. The Executive have announced that there will be an increase in the number of funded teacher posts in pre-school and early primary. SPPA in response to an invitation to comment on Section 34 statutory guidance on pre-school education responded that ‘it was glad to note that the level of teacher involvement has been based on the characteristics of the centre and that access to teacher involvement should be built around a centre’s patterns of delivery and management structure. SPPA is aware of current developments towards a degree/or work based equivalent qualification at level 5 for lead practitioner/manager qualifications. The guidance does not take account of this nor does it make clear how current levels of training and qualifications and future developments in early years and childcare will articulate with teacher qualifications and the Executive’s policy of delivering access to a teacher for every pre-school child.’

The Minister is also ‘launching a process to develop a long term Early Years Strategy covering child care, development and education to be published in the summer or
autumn of 2008.’ For further information visit www.scotland.gov.uk

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