What role do maintained nursery schools play in Early Years sector improvements?

This study, funded by TACTYC, is located within the context of a body of knowledge concerning the past, present and future of the maintained nursery school (MNS) in England. Although there are some existing reports which focus on particular regions of England (for example: No Author, 2018; Bertram and Pascal, 2019) and some which identify issues that are relevant across the whole country (for example: Early Education 2014, 2015, 2018; Paull and Popov, 2019), they all identify themes pertinent to the transformative effects of the MNS both historically and contemporaneously, within and beyond the parameters of the Early Years sector. However, these reports also alert the reader to significant challenges that may mitigate against MNSs’ ability to continue, due to structural pressures that are beyond their control.