ABSTRACT
The interesting aspect of the whole area of training, education and employment within the children’s centre development is that it has the potential to bring together the whole range of issues that underlie the Every Child Matters agenda. It can create the ‘glue’ for enabling services to look more closely at their fundamental vision. It can be a way to more closely promote partnership across all agencies. We need centres that facilitate in each and every way, empowerment and aspiration for staff for partner agencies, but most essentially for children and for parents. Aspiration, a ‘can do’ approach, must be pivotal to all that we do in the new world of children’s centres. The whole training and possibly employment aspect of the children’s centre agenda can bring together exciting opportunities for parents which can raise the status of individuals while ensuring that communities also experience a boost. It can have enormous benefits for children through the provision of good quality childcare, through excellent nursery, crèche, or childminding facilities. If the training and employment offered through the centre is an aspect of childcare or learning about children’s development this would make a great difference in terms of positive parenting.
