Scottish Study of Early Learning and Childcare: phase 4 report

Executive Summary

Background

From August 2021 the entitlement to funded early learning and childcare (ELC) in Scotland increased from 600 to 1140 hours per year for all three- and four-year-olds and for eligible two-year-olds. This means families can access up to 30 hours of funded ELC per week per child in term time, or around 22 hours spread across the calendar year. This report outlines findings from the surveys conducted as part of the fourth phase of the Scottish Study of Early Learning and Childcare (SSELC), focusing on two-year-olds who are accessing funded ELC.

In October 2022, alongside the Strategic Childcare Plan 2022 to 2026, Scottish Government published an Evaluation Strategy. This set out plans to evaluate the impact of the expansion of funded ELC to 1140 hours on outcomes for children, parents and carers (referred to throughout this report as 'parents' for brevity), and families. Three high-level outcomes for the expansion were highlighted:

1. Children's development improves and the poverty-related outcomes gap narrows

2. Family wellbeing improves

3. Parents' opportunities to take up or sustain work, study or training increase

The SSELC has been designed to provide key evidence on whether the ELC expansion has achieved these aims by measuring outcomes for children and parents who received the 600 hour entitlement (Phases 1 to 3) and comparing them with those who received the increased 1140 hour entitlement (Phases 4 to 6). Phase 4 data also provide robust standalone evidence, representative of the experience of funded ELC for two-year-olds in need in 2023 across Scotland.

Methods

The SSELC methodology comprises three linked components at each phase:

1. an assessment of children's development outcomes by ELC keyworkers

2. a survey of parents of the sampled children

3. observations by Care Inspectorate staff of the quality of experience within ELC settings attended by sampled children.

A survey of managers or heads of sampled ELC settings was introduced at Phase 4, which will be continued through the subsequent post-expansion phases.

The sample consisted of children aged between two years and two years six months who were receiving up to 1140 hours of funded ELC, and the parents of those children. Participants were recruited via local authority, private and voluntary sector group ELC settings (childminders were not included) in 31 local authority areas. Fieldwork was conducted between October and December 2023.

Most parent respondents were female (91%). More than half (58%) were living in single parent households. Household incomes tended to be well below average, reflecting the eligibility criteria for access to ELC when a child is aged two.

Children involved at Phase 4 of the study will be followed up at Phase 6, in the last quarter of 2024. This longitudinal element will provide evidence on the impact of one year of ELC on those children who need it most.

Key Findings

Use of ELC

The full costs of ELC at the setting were funded for 89% of children. Around a third of children attended the setting for fewer than 22 hours a week, and hence did not use their full entitlement of funded hours.

One in five (18%) children received childcare from a provider other than the participating ELC setting (formal or informal). Where additional childcare was used, this was most commonly provided by the child's grandparents, in 13% of families. Only 3% of children received formal ELC from another provider.

Most parents engaged with the ELC setting to some extent, with 88% having discussed their child's progress with staff. Two in five (38%) had talked to someone about how to support their child's learning at home, and the same proportion had received advice or information to support their child's speech, language and communication development.

Parents saw a lot of advantages in having a child aged two in ELC, including being good for them to interact with other children (95%), good for their independence / confidence (92%), because they enjoy it (87%), and because it enables parents to work, study or train (76%).

Child health and development

Most of the eligible two-year-olds were described by their parent as in good or very good health. Around one in ten (11%) had a long-term physical or mental condition or illness that limited their day-to-day activities.

Three-quarters (74%) of parents reported having no worries about how their child talks and 81% reported having no concerns about what their child understands. Concerns were more prevalent for boys than for girls and in more deprived areas. One in six (15%) received some level of support from the ELC provider specifically for speech and language development.

Children's keyworkers at ELC settings were asked to complete observations of the child's development using the Ages and Stages Questionnaire. Girls were more likely than boys to be assessed as "on schedule" in their development across four of the five domains, the exception being the gross motor skills domain. Half (48%) of girls were on schedule for the communication domain, compared with a third (33%) of boys. The gap was widest for the personal-social domain, with 53% of girls on schedule, compared with 28% of boys.

For the communication and the problem-solving domains, children living in the most deprived areas were less likely to be on schedule. A third (34%) of those in the most deprived areas were on schedule on the communication domain, compared with 44% of those in other areas. For the problem-solving domain, 29% were on schedule in the most deprived areas and 38% in other areas. Boys living in deprived areas were particularly at risk of not being on schedule, with pronounced differences in the communication, fine motor skills and personal-social domains.

Children's keyworkers also completed observations of the child's development using the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire. With the exception of emotional symptoms, across all the domains girls tended to have fewer difficulties than boys. The gap between scores for boys and girls was largest for the hyperactivity domain (54% of girls close to average compared with 32% of boys) and the prosocial behaviour domain (52% of girls and 33% of boys close to average). On the "total difficulties" score, 49% of girls were close to average compared with 29% of boys. There were also some differences by area deprivation, with boys living in the most deprived areas least likely to be close to average.

Parent work, education and training

Around two in five survey respondents (mostly women) were in employment, with the majority of these working fewer than 30 hours a week (31%), and only 9% working full-time. A third (35%) of single parents were in employment, compared with 46% of respondents from two-parent households. Partners (mostly men) were much more likely to be in full-time employment (51%), with a further 13% in part-time employment.

Those living in deprived areas were less likely to be in work or study: 51% of two-parent households with an eligible two-year-old living in the most deprived areas had at least one parent in employment, training or full-time education, compared with 81% in other areas. Differences for single parents were less stark (39% in the most deprived areas and 50% in other areas).

Fifteen percent of respondents reported they had entered or re-entered employment as a result of their child starting funded ELC (generally within the previous six months). In addition, 15% said they had started looking for work or a change in job, and 11% had entered or re-entered education or training.

Respondents had been able to do a number of other things beyond working or looking for work because their child is in ELC. Four in five respondents (81%) agreed they had been able to think about what they may do in the future. The majority also agreed they were feeling less stressed (68%). A third (35%) had been able to study or improve work-related skills.

Parental and family wellbeing

Three in five parent respondents (62%) said their health was good or very good. This proportion was lower in deprived areas (53%, compared with 67% in other areas). Two in five respondents (40%) reported having a long-term health condition. The large majority (79%) of these said the condition affected their mental health.

Slightly under a quarter (23%) of parents were recorded as having "low wellbeing", using the short form of the Warwick-Edinburgh Mental Wellbeing Scale. Mental wellbeing was higher among respondents living in two-parent households than single-parent households.

Nearly half (46%) of respondents reported that their child looked at books or stories every day at home, with no difference between boys and girls (47% and 45% respectively). Other home learning activities were more common for girls than boys, including painting or drawing (26% of girls did this every day, compared with 13% of boys) and reciting nursery rhymes or singing songs (69% of girls did this with someone at home every day, compared with 58% of boys).

Views of setting managers

Most settings offered support for parents on parenting concerns and to help with their child's learning and communication skills. Some settings were also able to offer other forms of support, such as provision of clothing for children or opportunities for parents to learn or improve skills.

Over half (56%) of setting managers agreed that the expansion of funded ELC had helped them to provide a broader range of support for families. Forty-five percent of setting managers agreed that the expansion had led them to work more closely with families for whom they provide support. Forty-seven percent agreed that it had led them to spend more time providing support to families.

Setting managers were asked what their setting had done in order to meet the requirements of the ELC expansion. The most common activities chosen related to staffing, with almost three-quarters (72%) saying they had taken on extra staff and over half (51%) providing additional training to staff. Some settings said they had increased fees for unfunded children (29%) or cut expenditure, for example on play materials (21%). Setting managers were then asked to select up to three main challenges that they had faced in meeting the requirements of the expansion. The most commonly mentioned were recruiting staff (59%) and accommodating children with additional support needs (53%).

Characteristics of ELC

Reviewers from the Care Inspectorate conducted observations of 149 settings using the Infant/Toddler Environment Rating Scale (ITERS-3). The ITERS tool was used to provide a snapshot of the experiences of children in their ELC settings. ITERS-3 has 6 different subscales: space and furnishings; personal care routines; language and books; activities; interaction and program structure. Settings were scored from 1 to 7 on each: 1 (inadequate), 3 (minimal), 5 (good), and 7 (excellent).

Settings scored highest on the Interaction subscale, with 78% of settings scoring 5 or above. Settings also scored high on the Programme Structure (74% scoring 5 or above), the Space and Furnishings (72%) and the Personal Care Routines (64%) subscales. On the Language and Books subscale 54% of settings scored 5 or above. The Activities subscale stands out as an area where many settings were performing less well, with only 11% of settings scoring 5 or above.

It is important to note that the ITERS tool is not the only method of assessing setting quality in Scotland. Indeed, Care Inspectorate ratings provide a broader measure of the quality of practice and policy within settings that have also been found to be related to children's outcomes in Scotland.