Much has been promised from the government about providing a more contemporary and streamlined system for child care at the beginning of the 21st century. In this article Calder critically evaluates the origins of the incoming Integrated Children's System and questions how welding two faulty and discredited systems from the 1990s together can possibly achieve this aspiration. Calder then raises some implementation issues before going on to offer some suggested remedial solutions to assist local implementation. (Contains 1 figure.)