Children: Childcare Costs Debate

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Department: HM Treasury

Children: Childcare Costs

Lord Tomlinson Excerpts
Thursday 31st January 2013

(11 years, 9 months ago)

Lords Chamber
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Lord Newby Portrait Lord Newby
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Yes, my Lords. Vouchers are one of the possible ways of dealing with this, and they are one of the options being considered.

Lord Tomlinson Portrait Lord Tomlinson
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Will the Minister explain to the House how improving the demands for training of care assistants of young children by requiring them to have a C-grade GCSE in maths and English helps them to make better provision for the children in their care?

Lord Newby Portrait Lord Newby
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My Lords, I think it is recognised by common consent that having better qualified teachers and assistants in this area is beneficial to the pupils and the young children being cared for. If we want, as we do, to improve the quality of the care given, part of it will involve soft skills but another part will involve basic competence.