Why the UK Should Support a Global Right to Early Childhood Education and Care By Dr Eva Mikuska and Dr Nikki Fairchild

As world leaders gather at the United Nations to consider a new optional protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC), we have a powerful opportunity to advance a global commitment to a child's right to early childhood care and education (ECEC). This initiative aims to secure at least one year of free pre-primary education for every child, everywhere. It’s an important step, and one the UK should support. While our current system meets the minimum standard envisioned by the proposed treaty, we cannot ignore the inequities and barriers to access to ECEC that still exist within our own borders. Nor should we hesitate to back a global effort that would bring enormous benefits to children worldwide, especially when we have the infrastructure and experience to lead by example.

We also know that although at least 54 countries have indicated their support for the initiative, the UK has yet to do so. Therefore, among other academics and organisations, we submitted the summary of ECEC in England to the Open-ended intergovernmental working group on an optional protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child available HERE arguing that that the access to ECEC places can be a challenge due to funding entitlement only being available for children over 2 years old and only for certain hours per week. This makes ECEC more exclusive where parents with financial means can pay for ECEC provision, whereas others can only access the minimum provided by the funded hours. We argue this policy choice is not inclusive as it fails to address the needs of families from low socio-economic backgrounds, and families who are migrants, refugees, and asylum seekers.

Below, we have provided details of the state funded hours and the impact they have for families. As noted, this funding is helpful but does not always allow all families to make the most of ECEC provision as there are only 15-30 hours funded places available per week, term time only (38 weeks). So, the ‘free’ hours need to be claimed by parents or carers but are paid directly to the nurseries. If parents or carers needed additional hours of childcare their only option is to pay the nurseries directly. In the UK, costs for 50 hours per week in ECEC nurseries in 2023 ranged between: £94.72 and £174.51 per week for a child aged 3 or 4 (taking into consideration 30 hours paid for by the government); £225.44 and £373.40 for two-years-olds; £227.17and £394.58 for under-twos (Coram Family Centre, 2023).

We further argue that the funding paid to settings does not provide sufficient financial cover to secure the minimum hourly rate of looking after young children. Especially given the low rate of pay for ECEC educators (Fairness Foundation, 2023). This issue is well documented, which means that raising the level of workforce qualifications has not been achieved, recruitment and retention of staff are problematic, and staff turnover is on the increase (Oppenheim & Archer, 2021). This primarily came to the fore

during the COVID-19 pandemic, when ECEC educators become classed as ‘key workers’ without being paid a remuneration commensurate with other key workers, and ECEC settings remained open to the young children of other key workers (Fairchild et al., 2022).

In summary, the UK Meets the Minimum, But That’s Not Enough.

While the UK offers 15–30 hours per week of government-funded ECEC for some children, this support:

- Only becomes available after age two

- Is limited to certain families based on income or employment status

- Applies only during term time (38 weeks per year)

- Often requires parents to navigate complex eligibility rules and claim the hours themselves

These limitations leave many families, especially those from low socio-economic backgrounds, or who are migrants, refugees, or asylum seekers, unable to benefit fully from the support available. In practice, this turns ECEC into a tiered system, where access to high-quality provision depends primarily on the ability to pay. We argue educators are underpaid and undervalued, despite playing a vital role in children’s early development. This leads to staff retention and recruitment worsening, with turnover rates climbing year after year. In addition, raising workforce qualifications, a key element of quality provision, has stalled due to poor working hours and conditions. Finally, during the COVID-19 pandemic, ECEC workers were classified as key workers, keeping settings open to support frontline families, yet their pay, support, and recognition have not reflected their contribution (Fairchild et al., 2022).

Join the Call

We urge the UK government to publicly support the drafting and adoption of this new UNCRC protocol. If you'd like to get involved or learn more, follow the Human Rights Watch website (Bede Sheppard), and our updates, and reach out to your MP or local representatives to make them aware of your views.

We argue Every Child Matters! It’s time to give every child, no matter where they are born, the foundation they deserve.

Reference list

Coram Family Centre (2023) Resources. Available https://corambaaf.org.uk/resources

Fairchild, N., Mikuska, É., Sabine, A., & Barton, S. (2022). The Early Childhood Education and Care sector’s perspective on the Early Childhood Studies graduate and the Early

Childhood Graduate Practitioner Competencies. University of Portsmouth. Available https://researchportal.port.ac.uk/en/projects/the-early-childhood-education-and-care-sectors-perspective-on-the

Fairness Foundation (2023) Fair Pay for Critical Days available https://fairnessfoundation.com/critical-days

Mikuska, E. and Fairchild, N. (2025) Open-ended intergovernmental working group on an optional protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child available http://dx.doi.org/10.13140/RG.2.2.35730.16326

Sheppard, B. (2025) The UN Needs Your Expertise on Pre-Primary and Secondary Education available https://www.hrw.org/news/2025/04/01/un-needs-your-expertise-pre-primary-and-secondary-education

Oppenheim, C. and Archer, N. (2021) The role of early childhood education and care in shaping life chances. London: Nuffield Foundation