Open petition: Review employment law awareness and enforcement in private Early Years

Created by Deanne Cook
Closes on 19 February 2027

There are concerns that employment rights are not being enforced in the private early years sector, both by level 2 and 3 qualified staff, and managers and leaders. We therefore call for a review of employment law awareness and enforcement of the law in the Early Years sector.

We also think that employment practices should be better incorporated into Ofsted's Leadership and Management inspection judgement. In our view the sector includes many staff and managers with limited knowledge of employment law, and there are repeated examples of poor practice, including excessive hours for young workers, lack of contracts, no breaks and unpaid training. We believe that workforce shortages exacerbate these issues, and that whilst safeguarding and recruitment are closely monitored, there is insufficient focus on employment law.

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