Early years issues are high on the political agenda. Recent months have seen a growing awareness that the United Kingdom faces considerable challenges in ensuring that it has sufficient early years workers with appropriate education and training if it is to meet the planned targets for expansion of early childhood provision. Yet many questions still remain in relation to how the country views its children, the values of the education and care that the country provides, and the type and level of qualifications and training that are considered appropriate for early years workers. This paper explores these issues in some detail and closes with a call for attention to a new construction of childhood and a reconsideration of the qualifications and training deemed necessary for early years workers.
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