§ Dr. Lynne JonesTo ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment (1) what assessment his Department has made of the likelihood of individuals offered training in childcare, as part of the New Deal, achieving sufficient qualifications to work in that intended capacity for local authority social services or education departments; [41528]
(2) what assessment his Department has made of the likelihood of individuals offered training in childcare, as part of the New Deal, subsequently achieving NVQ level 3 as a result of continued employer support after the initial six months of New Deal funding. [41529]
(3) if he will extend the New Deal arrangements for training to ensure that participants seeking qualifications for employment in childcare can continue beyond NVQ level 2. [41530]
§ Mr. Andrew SmithYoung people on the New Deal for 18–24 year olds, who wish to train to work with children, can work towards an NVQ level 3 childcare qualification during their New Deal placement, if their previous experience and qualifications are appropriate. If they gain an NVQ level 2 or 3 qualification, this will help them find employment whether in the voluntary sector, private sector or with a local authority. There is currently no formal requirement within the Children Act 1989 that childcare workers should have qualifications, but, in 85W registering a provider, the authority will look at the range of experience, qualifications and maturity of the person concerned and any other staff.
In some areas, individual local authorities have introduced, through their discretionary powers, requirements of registration to the effect that providers must either have, or be working towards, certain qualification levels. This should not, however, prevent childcare providers, including local authorities, from employing these young people under supervision, after their New Deal placement ends. Moreover, the local New Deal partnership may be able to arrange for the young person to work towards an NVQ level 3 qualification, after their New Deal placement ends, as part of the New Deal 'follow through' strategy. This could be arranged through the Training and Enterprise Council, using funding from the employer, or other sources—for example, the Single Regeneration Budget and the European Social Fund.
We are not in a position to predict the proportion of young people on New Deal who train to work with children who will thereafter work for local authorities, nor the number who will gain NVQ level 3 qualifications with employer support after their New Deal placement ends, as this will vary according to individual and local circumstances.
The Department and the Department of Health recently issued a consultation paper on the regulation of early education and daycare. The consultation paper outlines the Government's intention to introduce more consistent regulatory standards across different sectors and localities. We have also asked the Qualifications and Curriculum Authority and the relevant National Training Organisations to look at qualifications for childcare and early years workers.
§ Mr. HammondTo ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment when he will publish the Green Paper on Child Care Strategies. [41654]
§ Mr. Alan HowarthOur Green Paper on the national child care strategy will be published shortly. This will set out the broad principles of the strategy covering the whole of the United Kingdom and detailed proposals for England. My right hon. Friends the Secretaries of State for Scotland, for Wales and for Northern Ireland will be publishing in due course their own documents on implementation of the strategy in those countries.