ABSTRACT

While Scotland has its own policy-making procedures for the care and education of its under-fives, it shares its organisational framework with the rest of the United Kingdom. The terminology is similar: ‘nursery schools and classes’, ‘day centres’, ‘family centres’, ‘pre-school playgroups’, ‘private nurseries’, ‘community nurseries’ and ‘childminding’ have largely common meanings. Like other parts of the United Kingdom, Scotland has no national policy for its underfives: provision is non-statutory and therefore variable, often reflecting its origins in social welfare policies for disadvantaged areas.