As the Government’s flagship policy rolling out ‘free’ childcare to two-year-olds begins in earnest this month, it is expedient that it coincides with the Institute for fiscal Studies’ report into Sure Start and Children’s Centres. It’s worth a read.
With the Labour government-in-waiting being strongly encouraged by some in their party to revive Sure Start, the shadow cabinet are sadly remaining quite coy about committing. Hopefully the IFS study will re-open the debate.
The Conservative Government’s approach has been one of ‘outsourcing’, whether in dentistry, sewage, public transport – or as some fear – the NHS. It can be seen in their early years policy, and there are some concerning outcomes as a result. As cash-strapped families struggle with the rising costs of even the most basic necessities and employers reluctant to show any type of flexibility to parents, the pressure to find wraparound childcare has increased. It becomes a prerequisite of the economic system, more about working parents and less about children. Any nursery can tell you about the friction between parental responsibility and an unsympathetic employer; just look for the children arriving at nursery after a dose of Calpol.
Sure Start had a different aim, one that was about empowering families to prioritise the earliest years. There are consequences for children (and the country) if you don’t. As the IFS demonstrates, early intervention was life-changing. Without the support services in place, the impact of investment into care rather than family support is obvious in the statistics. What was previously a ‘delay’ in areas such as health visiting and speech therapy is now a crisis, especially for children with additional needs.
It’s too big a problem to solve by tweaking a policy and ‘outsourcing’ it, such as by increasing childcare hours; it needs a total rethink, where families are adequately supported, employment law prioritises the family and needs are assessed and met in a timely and adequate way.
So, we need a cultural shift away from subcontracting responsibility for raising children and towards empowering parents in balancing the tricky tightrope of their children’s needs, work and childcare. It seems from the IFS report that the long-term gains from Sure Start were worth the costs and often in unexpected ways. I’m not convinced an expansion of childcare hours will bear the same fruit, especially without the capacity for early intervention.
