International Centre for the Study of the Mixed Economy of Childcare

About ICMEC

The International Centre for the Study of the Mixed Economy of Childcare is a multi-disciplinary research centre established in May 2007 in the Cass School of Education and Communities. The centre, which has close links with the UEL Business School, brings together academics and students from across this university and other academic institutions nationally and internationally, as well as childcare business leaders, childcare professionals, national and local policy makers and politicians and representatives of unions and of private equity firms and other financial groups interested in investing in early childhood education and care provision.

ICMEC aims to influence research agendas and inform early childhood education and care policy and intervention locally, nationally and internationally. While it is primarily developing as a virtual centre to support collaboration and serve as a meeting point and clearing house for all interested in the mixed economy of childcare, ICMEC will also organise physical meetings and seminars in Britain. ICMEC is working to secure new funding for research, scholarship and knowledge transfer from a range of sources.

IMMEC’s aims are threefold:

• To generate greater knowledge about Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC) provision in countries which employ mixed economies of welfare and education services;
• To explore the contribution to young children’s well being within mixed economies of childcare; and
• To develop an international and multi-disciplinary approach to exploring mixed economies of childcare.

The Centre’s work programme will therefore focus upon:

1. developing a policy-relevant research agenda concerning comparisons between ECEC privatisation and marketisation processes in a variety of countries;
2. establishment of a virtual network of academics and stakeholders from the public, private for-profit and private not-for-profit (PVI) childcare sectors, in order to create a forum for the discussion of pertinent trends and developments in mixed economies of childcare;
3. organising a programme of events and international seminars to profile  relevant scholarship and support knowledge transfer;
4. presenting icmec2 generated research and other pertinent findings to a wide range of audiences nationally and internationally, including policymakers, academics, childcare professionals and parents.

 

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© 2007