Tackling the sustainability of early years childcare in the UK through a solution-based approach

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Funding early years education is a challenging task. From entitlement rates, rising staff costs and now a pandemic, settings have been under financial pressure for a sustained period.

As a journalist, it is expected that we report on social issues and raise awareness for those struggling. While true, I believe this should be taken one step further. Based on the notion of solutions journalism, this project will aim to establish what possible changes can be made for the early years sector.

This is a different approach to much of the contemporary reporting of childcare. Through a plethora of voices - including academics, professionals and charities - I will be discussing what the solutions are in making early years childcare more affordable for settings and parents.

My name is George Willoughby and I am the person behind this project. I am a data journalism MA student at Birmingham City University. I also studied journalism and communications at Cardiff University for my undergraduate degree. Having spent two years working at a pre-school, I was exposed to the aforementioned challenges. I developed an understanding of why funding shortfalls create such a variety of problems and I want to see what can be done to solve them.

Despite tireless efforts from early years staff and charities, policy reforms don't seem to be on the horizon. However, that doesn't mean we can't continue to emphasise the need for reform.

I would love to hear from as many people as possible. If you want to get in touch or know anyone who might want to help, let me know and we can discuss current policies, propose solutions and look ahead to the future.

The best way to reach out is via my email, or send me a message on Twitter.