What child-care reforms say about Britain’s welfare state
It is a hybrid of liberal and social-democratic thinking
Britain’s first attempt at providing universal child care fell victim to the baby boomers. The 1944 Education Act, part of the construction of Britain’s post-war welfare state, instructed local authorities to make provision for nursery places for the under-fives as well as schools for older children. The post-war surge in the birth rate, however, meant there were just far too many nippers for Britain’s cash-strapped government to fund these places and expand secondary schools. Priority was given to the older children and early-years education fell by the wayside.
This article appeared in the Britain section of the print edition under the headline “Nanny state”
Britain April 1st 2023
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- Can London stop deaths and serious accidents on its roads?
- What child-care reforms say about Britain’s welfare state
- The battle to keep “Portrait of Omai” in Britain
- Britain announces another crackdown on anti-social behaviour
- Britain is still marked by the mistakes of the Beeching Report
- Fixing Britain’s national water supply will be a marathon
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