The Pre-school Learning Alliance (PLA) is an early-years educational
registered charity
A charitable organization or charity is an organization whose primary objectives are philanthropy and social well-being (e.g. educational, religious or other activities serving the public interest or common good).
The legal definition of a ch ...
and a
voluntary sector provider of
childcare for young children in
England.
Introduction
The Pre-school Learning Alliance (the Alliance) is the largest early years membership organisation and voluntary sector provider of quality affordable childcare and education in England. An educational charity, the Alliance represents the interests of over 14,000 member settings who deliver care and learning to over 800,000 families every year.
The Alliance employs over 2,000 national and local staff and is supported by more than 750 volunteers every year. They directly contribute towards the care and well-being of very young children and their families in England.
A registered charity, the Alliance was established by parent volunteers in 1961 and has grown significantly since then.
The Alliance believes that children learn best through play and first-hand child-led experiences, involving exploration and discovery, which encourage their development and learning.
Families are involved in every aspect of service planning and delivery and they encourage parental involvement through consultation, parent-led fundraising events, open days, outings and family learning.
Early days
In 1961 a reader of the ''
Manchester Guardian
''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...
'', Belle Tutaev, pointed out the inadequacy of state-provided
nursery education
Early childhood education (ECE), also known as nursery education, is a branch of education theory that relates to the teaching of children (formally and informally) from birth up to the age of eight. Traditionally, this is up to the equivale ...
in the UK. She set up her own
playgroup by co-operating with a neighbour. Her suggested Nursery School Campaign resulted the formation of the Pre-School Playgroups Association (PPA) on 16 July 1962.
The PPA received a grant that year from the
Nuffield Foundation
The Nuffield Foundation is a charitable trust established in 1943 by William Morris, Lord Nuffield, the founder of Morris Motors Ltd. It aims to improve social well-being by funding research and innovation projects in education and social pol ...
, and in 1966 from the
Department of Education and Science, at which point 600 groups were affiliated. The ''
Plowden Report'' of 1967 recognised the value of playgroups.
The PLA
A change of name to Pre-school Learning Alliance occurred in 1995, and followed organisational changes.
A further more recent change of name to Early Years Alliance has since taken place.
References
{{reflist
Nursery World article celebrating 50 years of the Alliance in 2011 http://www.nurseryworld.co.uk/nursery-world/news/1095847/analysis-pre-school-learning-alliance-happy-birthday-pla
Further reading
* Brenda Crowe (1973), ''The Playgroup Movement''
External links
PPA timeline
Early childhood education in the United Kingdom
Early childhood educational organizations
Educational charities based in the United Kingdom
Organisations based in the London Borough of Islington