1st December 2023 

High quality early childhood education and care (ECEC) is part of England's critical social infrastructure, and critical to progress on gender equality.

Since Fawcett's last study on early education and childcare in 2022, there has been increasing consensus that our system needs substantial reform. That means we need to look to ways we can transform our system. 

This background report is part 1 of our 2-part project - supported by the Joseph Rowntree Foundation - looking at five other countries and territories, all of which have also undergone significant reforms to their ECEC systems. We explore market structures—the complex interactions between providers, regulators and service-users—and transformation: how do we plan for change, and how is it implemented?

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Read Transforming Early Childhood Education and Care: Sharing International Learning, Part 1

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This report takes a detailed look at systems in:

• Australia
• Estonia 
• France 
• Ireland
• Quebec and Canada 

Following a series of roundtable discussions and further research, Fawcett will publish Part 2 of this report in 2024. 

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It's time to reform childcare.

• Attend our Part 2 Report Launch
• Join Fawcett and be a part of our movement for a fairer childcare system that works for everyone.
• Read about our campaigning on childcare reform ahead of General Election 2024
• Read our previous work on international childcare systems from 2021, Childcare and Early Education Systems: A Literature Review