Abstract
In the 1990s the early childhood community has emphasised the importance of high quality services that provide the best possible environments for young children. Structural features of quality are generally agreed. This paper describes the current provision and quality of early childhood services in New Zealand. It argues that there has been a steady erosion of high-quality publicly-funded early childhood education and that the competitive free market model is inappropriate for the provision of education services. The paper discusses weaknesses in the state infrastructure that supports early childhood education and inadequacies in current funding arrangements. It analyses the 1995 budget decisions with particular focus on free kindergartens. Finally the paper describes an initiative by NZEI Te Riu Roa to develop proposals to take the sector forward on a sound basis into the 21st century.
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