September 25 Newsletter
Welcome back to EYER Hub
This month’s newsletter gathers together a rich tapestry of sector insights—from urgent workforce realities to emerging policy strategies and opportunities for influence. Whether you’re leading practice, shaping advocacy, or simply seeking space to reflect, we hope these resources offer clarity, connection, and momentum.
We also have some exciting webinars in the pipeline—bringing together practitioners, researchers, and advocates to explore the themes raised in this issue. Keep an eye out for details soon.
In this issue:
- EECC’s Pulse Check on public attitudes to early education
- NDNA’s staffing survey and the September expansion challenge
- NFER’s workforce analysis and what it means for policy and practice
- RAND Europe’s commentary on professional respect and workforce reform
- Bristol’s place-based response to the workforce crisis
- The rise of platform-based care and its implications for early years labour
- UNICEF UK’s heatmap of deprivation and early childhood outcomes
- EPI’s annual report on disadvantage and EYFS outcomes
- Government’s Best Start in Life strategy and sector reactions
- Hansard debate on giving every child the best start in life
- Nesta’s analysis of early years spending and policy trade-offs
- Education Committee’s new inquiry into the early years sector
- Induction and mentoring as tools for workforce retention and emotional scaffolding
EECC Pulse Check 2025
As the early years sector navigates reform under a new Labour government, the Early Education and Childcare Coalition’s Pulse Check offers timely insight into public and parental attitudes toward early education. Drawing on polling data and sector feedback, it explores how childcare is perceived, what families value, and where policy must do more to meet lived realities. The findings help shape advocacy and highlight where relational care, professional respect, and community-rooted expertise must be championed.
NDNA Staffing Survey and September Expansion
As the September expansion of funded hours rolls out, NDNA’s latest survey reveals that seven in ten nurseries are unable to operate at full capacity. With baby rooms and two-year-old provision particularly affected, the report highlights a shortfall of 36,000 staff nationally. It’s a sobering reminder that policy ambition must be matched by workforce investment—and that quality depends on the people who deliver it.
The Early Years Workforce in England 2025 (NFER)
This England-focused report offers a comprehensive overview of workforce trends, highlighting persistent challenges in recruitment, retention, and pay. It warns that without systemic investment, regional disparities and staffing shortages could undermine entitlement reforms. The findings offer a vital resource for those working to strengthen workforce stability and advocate for long-term reform.
RAND Europe Commentary: Professional Respect in Early Years
Despite growing political attention to early childhood education, this commentary argues that the workforce remains chronically undervalued—underpaid, under-supported, and often overlooked in policy design. It calls for long-term strategies that elevate the profession through fair pay, robust training, and meaningful career pathways. A useful framing tool for advocacy conversations around recognition and retention.
A Place-Based Policy Response in Bristol
Bristol’s locally grounded strategy offers a replicable framework for addressing workforce instability through collaboration, data-sharing, and inclusive leadership. The report calls for coordinated investment across education, health, and local government—treating early years workforce reform as a shared civic priority. A standout example of community-led systems change, and a model for other localities seeking joined-up solutions.
Care and the Platform Economy in the UK
As digital platforms increasingly mediate access to care services, this mapping exercise examines how gig-style arrangements are reshaping labour conditions in childcare and domestic support. The report raises concerns about precarity, algorithmic management, and the erosion of worker protections—issues that resonate deeply with ongoing advocacy for fair pay, visibility, and professional respect.
UNICEF UK: Held Back from the Start
UNICEF UK’s new report Held Back from the Start offers a stark, data-driven reminder of how deeply place-based deprivation shapes early childhood outcomes. Their analysis shows that every Local Authority in the top 20% for deprivation is also in the bottom 20% for multiple measures of child health and development. The findings reinforce the urgency of embedding relational, holistic support in communities facing systemic disadvantage.
Explore the report and heatmaps
EPI Annual Report on Disadvantage
EPI’s 2025 Annual Report reveals that children eligible for FSM are significantly less likely to meet EYFS development goals, with regional disparities compounding the challenge. The authors call for targeted investment and better data to track progress. A timely reminder to centre equity in every aspect of sector reform—and to ensure that deprivation is treated as a central policy concern.
Government’s Best Start in Life Strategy
The newly launched strategy pledges £1.5 billion to improve early years and family services across England. Key measures include incentives for teachers in disadvantaged areas, expansion of school-based nurseries, and the rollout of up to 1,000 Best Start Family Hubs. While ambitious, sector leaders have raised concerns about workforce capacity and the impact on PVI settings. The strategy’s implementation will be closely watched in the months ahead.
Hansard Debate: Giving Every Child the Best Start in Life
Held in the House of Commons on 16 July 2025, this debate centred on the Best Start in Life strategy and broader efforts to improve early childhood outcomes. MPs raised concerns about workforce shortages, regional disparities, and the impact of poverty on child development. The transcript offers a valuable tool for mapping political will—and identifying where practitioner voice must be brought to the table.
Nesta: Trends in Early Years Spending
Nesta’s analysis of early years spending trends offers crucial context for understanding the policy pressures and trade-offs ahead. The blog explores how funding has shifted from targeted support (like Sure Start and EYPP) toward universal entitlements, raising questions about equity, quality, and workforce capacity. A call to ensure that economic efficiency doesn’t eclipse emotional literacy, practitioner wellbeing, or the relational richness of early years practice.
Education Committee Inquiry into the Early Years Sector
Announced in September 2025, the Education Committee’s inquiry will examine the effectiveness of early years education and care in England, with a focus on workforce sustainability, funding, and outcomes for disadvantaged children. The inquiry invites written submissions from providers, researchers, and advocacy groups, with a deadline of 17 October. A strategic moment to contribute evidence and push for reforms that reflect the emotional, relational, and pedagogical depth of early years work.
Valuing the Early Childhood Education Workforce
This article explores how induction and mentoring can serve as powerful tools for fostering professional growth and emotional resilience in early years settings. Drawing on practitioner narratives, it positions mentoring not just as technical guidance, but as relational scaffolding—affirming the complexity and value of early years work. It’s a reminder that retention is not just about contracts and conditions—it’s about connection, affirmation, and the emotional architecture of belonging.
This month’s issue paints a vivid picture of a sector at a crossroads—rich in expertise, strained by policy, and brimming with potential. As we move into autumn, EYER hub remains committed to holding space for reflection, connection, and change. Whether you’re leading a setting, shaping policy, or nurturing relationships on the ground, we see you. And we’re here to keep amplifying your voice.
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