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Report into child care for under-two-year-olds released

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21 March 2011 ¬ for immediate release

Full report at www.occ.org.nz


Report into child care for under-two-year-olds released


Placing infants and toddlers in child care is not bad' for them - provided it is good quality, according to the findings of a report released by Children's Commissioner John Angus today.

The report, Through their lens: An inquiry into non-parental education and care of infants and toddlers, suggests quality is variable in this country and some improvements are needed. "Children under two have very different needs to older children so we can't take a one size fits all approach to child care.

Under 2-year-olds' rapid brain development, underdeveloped immunity and need for stable attachment mean they have very specific educational and care needs. "While we found that child care for very young children is not bad for them, the quality has to be high.

Our report suggests changes are needed to ensure consistent high quality ¬ and that current policy, regulation and training of staff is a bit underdone.

"This isn't surprising given that the education and care of under-2s is the fastest growing area in the provision of early childhood services. "Alongside this rapid growth is a lot of debate about funding and quality. It's a good time to take a step back and consider these issues from the perspective of infants and toddlers.

"Our findings are consistent with a recent ERO report, which also suggested quality is variable. We've made a number of recommendations that would strengthen the service provided to very young children.

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"These include reducing the number of under-2s in one group, increasing the ratio of staff per child and placing more emphasis on the specific knowledge and skills needed to work with this age group. "For example, the report highlights the practice in some childcare centres of placing qualified staff with the 3 and 4-year-olds, while the infants and toddlers are cared for by unqualified staff. Government needs to look at the way current regulations and funding arrangements allow this.

"The report also finds that in an ideal world, care at home by parents or extended family is in the best interests of infants under one-year-old. That's not about judging parents for returning to work or saying that all young infants should be at home all the time.

That's not the reality for many of the parents we spoke to - who have financial, career and family pressures. "But there is room for government policy to better support parents who make a choice to stay at home, through more flexible parental leave provisions.

I think it's time we revisited the mix of parental leave entitlements and subsidised child care to see how they can be structured to best meet the needs of very young children. "Rather than spend a large amount of tax payers' money on subsidies for infants to be in child care, that money might be better put into supporting care at home by the parent.

For an under 2-year-old child in full time care, the taxpayer subsidy actually comes close to what a parent receives in paid parental leave," he said. The report makes a number of other recommendations across policy, regulation and practice to strengthen the provision of formal care for infants and toddlers.

These include creating better connections with health professionals and improving access to quality education and care in low socioeconomic areas.

"I'm heartened by recent announcements from the Government that children are high on the priority list. I would like to see them take a good look at this report. "In particular, I would like to see a review of the current parental leave provisions and consideration of quality issues in the delivery of child care for infants and toddlers.

Quality should not be left entirely to parents to monitor ¬ government needs to take a far greater role in ensuring young children are getting a fair go. "Improving the quality of care for our youngest citizens would give them the best possible start in life," he said.

Ends.

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© Scoop Media

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