Later this month, the Chancellor will set out his first Budget of the Parliament – an opportunity for the Government to prove their commitment to social mobility through greater investment in the early years.
But spending decisions are often based on which Secretary of State shouts the loudest or which policies attract the highest polling figures. And because of this, early years rarely tends to feature highly in Budgets. (The obvious exception is, of course, access to free childcare, which can poll highly but ultimately equates to a transfer of cost from parents to the tax-payer and not any new or significant net investment to the sector).
I was reminded of this when reading Coalition Diaries (author David Laws is my boss). In 2014, the Lib Dems had to fight hard to secure an Early Years Pupil Premium (EYPP) of £50m per year and prevent a further £100m of cuts to the early years budget. Early years was never a priority for the then Education Secretary, Michael Gove.
In the end, an EYPP of up to £300 per disadvantaged child was secured. It’s too early to tell whether the EYPP has had an impact on longer-term outcomes, although there is some qualitative evidence of perceived impacts, including by helping staff to focus on the additional needs of children and secure specialist equipment (thereby supporting children’s confidence in communication skills).
What is interesting is that, more than two years since the EYPP was introduced, funding levels remain the same. This compares starkly with the premium for primary-aged pupils, which more than doubled after two years and now stands at £1,320 per disadvantaged child. Last month, NAHT called on the Government to double the funding rate for the EYPP, acknowledging the opportunity it creates to narrow the disadvantage gap early on.
This month’s Budget presents the Government with a perfect opportunity to do just that and put their words into action, but I’m sceptical that it will happen.
- See the Department for Education’s Experiences of the early years pupil premium report, published January 2017, at http://bit.ly/2hPh5MX.
