A major survey of early years providers has found the sector beset with concerns - from funding and staff retention rates to the rising numbers of children with special education needs or disabilities, amid lingering concerns that reducing staff to child ratios will do more harm than good.

The findings come from a major government-commissioned survey of the sector between March and July 2021, which gathered responses from 6,533 group-based providers (GBPs) - private and voluntary settings - and 2,624 school-based providers (SBPs) and childminders.

The report was the first since 2019, as no survey in 2020 was carried out due to the pandemic. We’ve read through the report to pick out some of the key findings:

Pay and staff retention

The average mean hourly pay for GBPs was reported as £11.78 and £18.57 for SBPs. This disparity is explained because the majority of SBP staff are more highly qualified and so able to command higher wages.

This represented a 6.6 per cent increase between 2019 and 2021 for GBPs and annual growth rates of 7.8 per cent for SBPs between 2019 and 2021.

Lower pay for GBPs was cited as one reason why retention in this part of the sector remains challenging, with a mean average turnover rate of 16 per cent. Unrealistic expectations in the role and long working hours were also cited as core reasons staff leave the profession.

SBPs see better retention rates, with an average turnover rate of 6 per cent for all settings. However, for a small portion - 6 per cent - turnover ranged between 26 and 50 per cent of all staff, underlining how challenging retention has been.

Concerns around the number of “quality” candidates for the job - ie, those with enough qualifications or experience - were also highlighted.

Furthermore, the survey found that 97 per cent of all staff in early years settings are female - underlining the ongoing challenge of recruiting male staff into the sector.

Finances and fees

The impact of the pandemic was severe on settings, with many saying they would not have survived without furlough.

Changes to working patterns in the wider economy continue to have a negative impact, with demand for childcare places falling as parents work flexibly or from home and so are less reliant on these settings.

Wages for staff were cited as the biggest cost for both setting types - and will likely get harder with the national living wage rising from £8.91 to £9.50 for those aged 23 and over in April 2022.

Government funding was also cited as a cause of concern - with many saying increases that have been received are not enough to keep pace with rising inflation. This also created instability in their settings that led to some of the retention issues seen above.

Many settings have resorted to putting fees up to try and cover costs but are wary of doing this too much for fear of impacting parents’ ability to pay.

SEND

Both setting types reported seeing increasing numbers of children needing SEND support - saying they are seeing “delayed development of speech and language and physical skills”.

The report noted though that, while these children may benefit from SEND support, it does not necessarily mean they have been identified as having SEND, but instead has been caused by the impact of the pandemic.

Nevertheless, this was still creating new demands on staff and more “challenging work environment[s]” for staff, and underlines the need for more staff in settings and more training for existing staff.

The report also said that many settings are seeing children with needs that have not been picked up prior to starting nursery because they were not picked up during lockdowns in the pandemic - and that limited social interactions for children have also delayed usual development cycles.

Staffing ratios

Although this survey was conducted long before reports the government may relax the rules regarding children to staff ratios to help lessen the economic impact of childcare costs, it is something that providers were already wary of when asked.

Respondents said that they worried this would be an “unsatisfactory” approach that would impact the quality of childcare provision being provided and children’s development.

Commentating on the findings, Neil Leitch, CEO of the Early Years Alliance, said the findings showed that early years settings were facing a “perfect storm” of issues from a lack of funding to staff challenges that were wreaking havoc with many providers.

“As these reports show, there has never been a more difficult time to run, manage or work in an early years setting,” he said.

“What we need is a clear, comprehensive strategy for the early years sector, one that prioritises the provision of quality early education alongside affordable childcare for parents, and recognises that substantial investment is needed to make any of this possible.”