The local government role in pre-school child care policy in France, Germany, Italy and the UK

In a volume that deals with convergence / divergence in the institutional development of the public services sector in some European countries, in a comparative perspective, chapter 4 traces changes in an area of policy (pre-school child care) that displays strong similarities across four countries (UK, France, Germany and Italy). There are similar approaches in child protection involving the courts and key roles for public agencies; a low level of child care provision in the early years with strong independent sectors; strong emphasis on pre-school education, with the main institutional provision linked with the regular education system, except in Germany. Dissimilarities arise from differences in local government system and/or the relationship between central and local government, such as relatively uniform system in France and the UK, variations between Lænder in Germany, and greater autonomy at the regional and local levels as a source of diversity in Italy. The strong central policy drives towards pre-school education and child care to facilitate parental labour force participation is causing some convergence. In this respect, developments in Italy, the UK and Germany may be reducing differences between their systems and that of France.