Tulip Siddiq MP, Shadow Minister for Early Years, responding to Save the Children’s ‘Untapped Potential’ report, said:

“The nationwide shortage of trained nursery teachers is deeply worrying.

“As the effects of fewer qualified staff are felt more acutely in areas of greater deprivation, Government inaction is creating a situation where children are at risk of a disadvantaged start in life, simply because of where they were born.

“The Tories have ignored this area for too long and in doing so are failing to put working families first. It’s time they put a real strategy in place to ensure a childcare system that delivers for children, parents and the economy.”

Ends

Notes to editors

Save the Children, Untapped Potential, November 2016, http://www.savethechildren.org.uk/resources/online-library/untapped-potential