Childcare Bill

I shall respond now to the issues affecting Wales. The intention of that amendment, as we understand it, is to ensure that Welsh local authorities fund or secure free access to child protection training to all registered providers of childcare in Wales, so that they are trained to understand their roles and responsibilities in protecting children or in notifying relevant authorities when they suspect that a child may be at risk of harm. The Welsh national minimum standards, which are applicable to registered providers of childcare for children under the age of eight in Wales, require providers to operate to a satisfactory standard and to keep children safe. This means that they need to undertake the training required in order to fulfil this obligation. Such training will include training in child protection. In addition, the Welsh national minimum standards require providers to have in place, at the point of application for registration, a statement setting out their own child protection policy. This statement should be based on the procedures of their local safeguarding children boards. Clause 23 of the Bill provides that a Welsh local authority may assist any person who provides childcare, and subsection (2) provides that this may include financial assistance—which, of course, could include the funding of training. Under subsection (3), Welsh local authorities must have regard to any guidance issued by the National Assembly for Wales. Already many local authorities in Wales use Assembly Government funding to support child protection. I am informed that the Assembly Government have confirmed that they will consider using their powers to issue stronger guidance in this area as necessary. I hope that meets the concerns of the noble Baroness in respect of Wales. Amendment No. 74, in the name of the noble Baroness, Lady Walmsley, requires early years providers to have undertaken local safeguarding children board-approved child protection training within a year of registration. We believe this requirement is met by a number of provisions which are being put in place already: first, by the work of the new local safeguarding children boards; and, secondly, by the inspection of all newly registered providers by Ofsted seven months after registration. The noble Baroness was not keen on the process when I described it earlier in respect of checking on training but, having looked back at my words, they appear to me to be reasonable and not amazing. Nonetheless, it is one of the areas at which the inspectors will look to ensure the effective implementation of welfare requirements. Amendments Nos. 80 and 81 would impose similar requirements in respect of childcare providers for older children. I circulated a paper to the Grand Committee in the bundle of papers that I gave to the noble Baroness, Lady Morris, on 24 April, setting out the proposed requirements of the Ofsted childcare register which affect childcare workers looking after older children. We will be consulting on the detail of these requirements but we intend them to include a requirement that providers must ensure that children are kept safe from harm and that they operate in accordance with the policy of the local safeguarding children boards. Paragraph 23 of the paper I circulated states:"““The provider will need to ensure that the provision is operated in line with the local safeguarding children board policy and that staff are appropriately trained to make sure children and young people in their care are safe from harm””." I hope that I have met most of the concerns of the noble Baroness, but we are not minded to think that it is appropriate for Parliament to state that all training in this area should, without exception, be free.