The Scottish Government must work with local authorities to identify and stop underfunding and start building futures by taking the following steps: • Children’s futures must be a priority for educational recovery plans and the Scottish Government Budget should include uplifts in the funding for delivering ELC places • Current and proposed hourly rates for partner providers must be reviewed annually in line with increasing costs to ensure providers are able to cover the cost of delivering the new offer as well as retaining and investing in their current staff • The new Workforce Strategy should ensure that local authorities ensure a mixed approach to taking on new staff including; qualified staff, developing trainees and apprentices and recruiting from outside the existing ELC workforce • The new Workforce Strategy should include recruitment programmes with the aim of getting people, especially men, over 50s and members of the BAME community, who had not previously considered ELC as a career, trained and into the ELC workforce • As part of the review of administrative burdens on providers the Scottish Government should work with NDNA Scotland, the sector and UK government to create a family-centred account...