The schools watchdog Ofsted is to increase its focus on early-years education as part of its new five-year strategy, to address the devastating impact of the pandemic on some of the youngest children in England.
Ofsted is concerned that children in early years are lagging behind in their communication and language skills owing to Covid disruption, while the sector is under pressure as thousands of staff have left since the first lockdown and childcare providers are down by 5,000.
