Speaking at the Social Market Foundation in London, Ms Hughes said, 'It won't be easy to meet child poverty targets and close the attainment gap between poor children and the rest. It is also increasingly clear that these objectives are inextricably linked and that success in one will help generate success in the other.'
Ms Hughes said employers were increasingly looking for 'soft' skills, such as resilience, flexibility, leadership, initiative and problem-solving and interpersonal skills.
She added, 'It seems likely that good parenting helps to foster these attributes in children, and since poverty is a barrier to parenting because it is draining and stressful, this is another reason for prioritising additional help for the parents of poor children, and not just in their early years.'
Social Market Foundation director Ann Rossiter spoke about the importance of 'parenting style', which was influenced and could be improved by how much parents knew about their child's education.
Schools could help parents, for example by introducing 'nurture classes'
for children with social and emotional difficulties, she said.
Patrick Diamond of the London School of Economics called for parents to be involved in the running and governance of children's centres. He said, 'In the context of the early years, services giving parents greater ownership in the delivery of services is also a really important issue.'
