Teachers, lecturers and their employers are being asked for their views on various options for changes to their pension scheme. The consultation has been launched by the Department for Education and Skills as part of a review of the Teachers’ Pensions Scheme (TPS) being carried out to identify ways in which it could be modernised.The aim of the review is to find ways to give teachers and lecturers greater choice and flexibility in the way they plan and save for retirement, and to ensure the long-term affordability of the scheme.

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A national childcare charity publishes a report today setting out a vision of the future where every child has the right to childcare and families have access to quality care close to their homes and at a price they can afford. “A new era for universal childcare?” has been drawn up by Daycare Trust in the lead up to the publication of the Government’s own plans for childcare.Today’s report consists of two papers. The first, written by Daycare Trust, details existing provision for childcare and early years services and says there is still only one registered childcare place for every four children under the age of eight. This, it acknowledges, is a significant improvement on the position in 1997 when there was only one place for every nine children. The paper says a typical nursery place for a child under two costs nearly 7,000 pounds a year and it claims that access to childcare is a lottery, dependent on where families live, their income and employment.

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The Department of Trade and Industry has published a series of guides to help councils and their 800,000 suppliers to develop e-procurement systems. The guides look at e-procurement from the point of view of technology, customers and suppliers and cover business processes from development to final delivery. There is also an introduction to e-business which looks at the benefits of using technology in all areas of a business and an introduction on creating and maintaining a co-operative and mutually beneficial relationship with customers and suppliers.The guides have been produced by bringing together in one place the knowledge and experience gained by the DTI over a period of time in promoting best practice as a way of helping businesses become more efficient, competitive and profitable.

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