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The Government is committed to promoting the welfare and
development of all our young children. Good quality care and
education in the early years raise educational standards and
opportunities, and enhance children's social
development.
The Government is determined that all childcare services, be
they new or established, provide a secure and safe environment for
children, not least so that parents can have confidence that their
children are well looked after.
About the national standards
The national standards represent a baseline of quality below
which no provider may fall. However, they are also intended to
underpin a continuous improvement in quality in all settings.
There are 14 national standards. Each standard describes a
particular quality outcome, and is accompanied by a set of
supporting criteria giving information about how that outcome is to
be achieved.
Regulations under the Children Act require providers
(technically the registered person in each setting) to meet the 14
standards and to have regard to the supporting criteria. The law
also requires OfSTED to have regard to both the standards and
criteria.
The national standards do not override the need for providers to
comply with other legislation such as that covering health and
safety, food hygiene, fire or planning requirements.
Source: The National
Standards |