'This report is a review of the international evidence about the social benefits of early childhood education and care (ECEC). It provides an analytic overview of the various rationales that drive the development of ECEC services. It summarizes existing knowledge from research and highlights policy lessons and measures that .are shown to contribute to successful ECEC policy development and implementation.'
This report provides a comparative analysis of the extent to which 31 European states have adopted measures which promote the reconciliation of working and private and family life. Author puts the focus in this report on measures which go beyond those required by EU law. In particular, the report is concerned with flexible arrangements governing the time during which and the place in which work is undertaken, with flexibility in the use of family-related leave, with carers’ leave and with measures permitting the sharing of parts of maternity leave between parents in the 28 Member States and the 3 EEA countries: Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway.