Responding to new statistics released today on education provision for children under five, 

Paul Whiteman, general secretary at school leaders’ union NAHT, said: “There is no doubt that there are things to be concerned about in this data.

"High quality early years education is one of the nearest things we have to a silver bullet in education, particularly when it comes to narrowing the gap between children from disadvantaged backgrounds and their peers. It is therefore a real concern that there has been a decline in the number of two-year-olds deemed eligible for funding to access early years provision.

“It is equally worrying to see an increase in the proportion of staff working in the early years without the relevant qualifications. A highly trained workforce is an essential part of providing excellent early education.

"We are pleased that Labour has made the early years one of its highest priorities and committed to a sea-change in early years provision. Policies like the expansion of nursery places in schools could be an important part of that work. We want to see every child being able to access the very highest quality early education possible and we stand ready to work with the new government to help achieve that objective.”