Understaffed nurseries. Endless testing. Zero tolerance behaviour policies. A children's mental health crisis and rock bottom staff morale across the sector. What has happened to education and childcare in this country, and who exactly is profiting?

The current policies surrounding the lives and learning of children are not working. Too many young people are inadequately prepared for the next stage in their life and have been reduced to anonymous data points by organisations and successive governments who chase profits and prioritising league tables at the cost of developing well-rounded, happy people who are able to reach their potential.

In this vital and timely new book, journalist Cherry Casey lifts the lid on the problems that are engulfing the lives of our children and those who work with them. Scrutinising the various environments where children of all ages spend their days, she shines a light on those who are benefitting from the status quo and talks to the inspirational leaders and workers who are swimming against the tide and championing an approach to care and education that puts children first.

"Cherry Casey shows us how the UK's childcare and education systems prioritise capitalist greed over the wellbeing of children (despite the best efforts of the professionals working within them) and the devastating impact that has. A crucial read for anyone who wants to understand how we got here, which countries are doing it better than us and what urgently needs to change." - Natasha Devon, author of The Nuance Drought

"Childhood Ltd is a powerful, compelling indictment of the way we treat our children. The book is essential reading for all those concerned about the growing problems surrounding children's lives, highlighting how the datafication of children from babies to teens is producing generations of young people with unrealised potential and low wellbeing. Cherry Casey shows, through vivid and insightful storytelling, that it does not need to be this way. Childhood Ltd should be read by everyone who thinks childhood matters." - Diane Reay, Professor of Education, University of Cambridge

"A timely and energising call to arms that persuasively explores the ways our education system has become distorted by metrics." - Sammy Wright, author of Exam Nation

"With testimony from education's embattled front line and detailed insights into all elements of this stretched, overburdened and underfunded sector of society, Childhood Ltd lays bare the scandal of the failings imposed on England's schools. A must-read for anyone who dares to hope for a better future." - Sarah Kilpatrick, Deputy General Secretary of the NEU

"A vital and important look at how we raise our children. Essential reading for anybody who cares about the next generation." - Paul Lindley, author of Raising the Nation