Nottingham City Early Years & Childcare Unit was established in 1998 as a cross-departmental initiative between the Departments of Leisure and Community Services, Social Services and Education. The Early Years & Childcare Unit is responsible for developing the National Childcare Strategy at a local level.

The Early Years & Childcare Unit (EYCU) has responsibility for sustaining and developing new early education (3-4 years) and childcare (0-14 years, or 16 for those with a disability or special educational needs) across all sectors and administration of the Nursery Education Fund for free nursery education places. As a service we are committed to providing practical support and guidance to new and existing Providers as well as providing information to Parents and Carers, broadly we:

• Play a crucial advisory role in the OfSTED registration and inspection process.
• Deliver a range of initiatives to support the quality and sustainability of Early Years and Childcare provision, such as sustainability grants and business support.
• Provide over 50 courses per year plus a range of workshops, conferences and other professional development opportunities for professionals within the sector, attended by over 2,000 practitioners
• Provide Early Years, Childcare and other information to over 4,000 Parents and Carers through the Children and Families Information Service.

The Childcare Act 2006, which has just passed through Parliament, will help transform Early Years and Childcare services “for generations to come”. The Act will introduce a comprehensive set of legislation based on the Ten Year Childcare Strategy and will ensure that Parents and Carers have confidence that the sector will be supported at a local and national level over the coming years.

To read more about the 2006 Childcare Act click Childcare Act 2006 - Every Child Matters