Policy Developments 1990-2004 - Centre for Early Childhood ...

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Section 4Policy Developments 1990-2004childcare is of concern to Congressand working parents, high qualitychildcare provision makes a realcontribution to children developingtheir potential while poor qualityprovision can be damaging. (ICTU,2002:Foreword).The Cross-Border Rural ChildcareProject produced a report, Quality inServices for Young Children in RuralAreas (Hayes and Moore, 1998). Thisreport discusses the complexity of definingquality and lists a number of perspectivesfrom which it can be identified:The child development perspective;The government/regulatory perspective;The social service perspective;The parent perspective;The child perspective;The social policy funding perspectiveThe staff perspective;The cultural perspective (Hayes andMoore, 1998:3-5).The report further identifies complexities inthe attainment of quality in the ruralcontext that exist in addition to challengesin urban areas, including scatteredpopulations, distance and transportproblems, small services leading to highstaff turnover, low amount of supportservices, funding and inappropriatenational policies for rural areas (Hayes andMoore, 1998:8-9).In May 2004, Planet Childcare PolicyGroup, which represents the Partnerships,published Community ChildcareServices in Disadvantaged Areas -Current Review and FutureRecommendations. This publication wascompiled to present the results of a surveyof community childcare facilities which,“…raise concerns about what it sees as apotential crisis in community childcare”(Planet, 2004:1). The document isprimarily concerned with the sustainabilityof community childcare on foot of thepossible removal of their main source ofincome, i.e. Community Employmentschemes and the EOCP grant aid. Theymake the argument that the value ofcommunity childcare should be recognisedas a cost effective family supportmechanism with wide ranging potential inthis regard. In addition, it cites thepotential of the partnership companies todevelop an overall quality framework forchildcare that would harness the expertisethat has accumulated within thecommunity childcare services. This, it isenvisaged, could be achieved throughcollaboration with the CECDE. (Planet,2004:6)Implications for the National Framework for Quality– Other OrganisationsDefining Quality:1. High adult-child ratios are an important characteristic of quality services2. The importance of record-keeping within services is seen as being an importantelement of quality.3. The quality of premises and facilities impacts on the quality of the services.4. Equal access to services by all children and their families is an inherentcharacteristic of quality.5. Affordability for all, including those with special needs and affected bydisadvantage, is a key element in providing a quality service.48
Section 4Policy Developments 1990-20046. The curriculum or programme followed, as well as the methodologies employedwithin services impacts on the quality of the service provided.7. Parental involvement is a key characteristic of quality.8. The training and qualifications of personnel, both at pre-service and in-service level,has an important bearing on the quality of the service provided.9. Quality childcare must be flexible to meet the needs of parents and families accessingtraining or employment outside the home.10. Quality is a subjective concept and can be viewed from a multiplicity of perspectivesdepending on the stakeholder or the objectives in question.11. The availability of appropriate materials and equipment to enhance childdevelopment is an important feature of quality.Assessing Quality:1. The inspection and assessment of services is an important element in ensuringquality within service provision.Supporting Quality:1. High quality childcare is a necessity in all areas, regardless of socio-economicdisadvantage or other adverse conditions.2. Quality needs to be supported in different ways and to differing degrees in variousareas, including rural and urban areas.49
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