Policy and Politics
Ex-Sure Start director calls for defence of universal access to centres
The first director of Sure Start, Naomi Eisenstadt, has voiced her concerns about the Government's targeting of the 'neediest children' at the expense of all children, which she said risked pushing more families into poverty.
Speaking at an event organised by the NCB in London last week, Ms Eisenstadt said that it was important that access to Sure Start children's centres remained universal.
It was 'deeply worrying', she said, 'this language about the neediest families. I'm not sure what they mean.'
She added, 'If you only target the neediest you will miss families on the cusp (of poverty). If you wind up with only 2 to 5 per cent, you will miss the 30 per cent' of the most deprived families.
Referring to Prime Minister David Cameron's well-publicised comments about the 'sharp-elbowed middle-classes' using Sure Start, she said, 'When did anyone say a school was rubbish because middle-class people want to use it?'
Ms Eisenstadt, a senior research fellow at the University of Oxford, who has recently published a book about the origins of Sure Start, described today's national network of children's centres as 'a phenomenal achievement'.
She said that in the face of cuts and threats to children's centre services, it was vital to hold on to the infrastructure of children's centres.
However, she warned that there was a risk that cuts would lead to 'a not-good-enough service, where people will say, "What's the point?" Holding on to some quality is really important. Holding on to the infrastructure, we will have something to rebuild.'
Ms Eisenstadt said that she was 'heartbroken' at the removal of the ring-fence for Sure Start funding, but urged the sector to use local authorities' legal duties set out in the Childcare Act 2006 to protect children's centres.
'We need to use what we have legally to argue (for) what local authorities should be doing.'
She also said that she was very concerned about changes to welfare policy currently going through Parliament, and the Government's messages about poverty.
'Frank Field says that it's not about money. I thought poverty was about money. If you offered me a parenting class or 20 quid, I'd take the 20 quid.'
She said that social capital was 'in part about money' and 'in part about access to those sort of people - the who-you-know stuff in terms of social capital and social mobility is hugely important.'
Responding to one delegate's concern that staff in her children's centre weren't certain who their services were for any more, Ms Eisenstadt said she believed that it was important to hold on to the parents who come for messy play sessions, as well as to those who really need targeted support.
Afterwards, Joyce Connor, programme director for Early Years at the NCB, said, 'This event, one of a series supported by the DfE for NCB's early years networks, was a real opportunity to offer information and resources for those supporting families. Participants fed back that Naomi had inspired them to keep focusing on quality and children's outcomes, and the workshops had given them knowledge and tools to take back to their teams.'
- NCB is running eight early years networks regional events as part of the peer-to-peer support programme. The next event is in Birmingham on 12 March, with keynote speaker Professor Cathy Nutbrown. See www.ncb.org.uk/ecu/events.
NCB is also working with C4EO to offer up to five days of sector specialist support free to local authority early years services. Visit http://www.ncb.org.uk/what-we-do/early-years/ early-years-peer-to-peer-support.
