MP Graham Allen urges parents to provide support for children in early childhood

Summary

A report written by Graham Allen MP on behalf of the Coalition Government details the recommendations for parents and carers to provide their children with the necessary foundations to reach their full potential in later life.

The report ‘Early Intervention: The Next Steps’ outlines the general approaches and specific policies and programmes for parents to consider in the first three years of their children’s lives to establish good health, social values and behaviour sooner rather than later.

The document sets out an approach which offers a real opportunity to make lasting improvements in the lives of children, to forestall many persistent social problems, end their transmission from one generation to the next, and to make long-term savings in public spending.

Despite covering a range of tried and tested policies, the provision of successful evidence-based Early Intervention Programmes remains persistently patchy, and hindered by institutional and financial obstacles.

In consequence, there remains an overwhelming bias in favour of existing policies of late intervention at a time when social problems are well-established.

The report outlines:

Crucial areas of brain development where the first three years see 80% of the brain developed.
Exploration of the social and economic benefits of Early Intervention.
Key themes of the first half of the report in the context of current policy and practice.
The most effective Early Intervention Programmes and their cost effectiveness.
Localised institutions as the best in providing the best universal and targeted services.

Finally, the key recommendation of this report is the creation of a new, independent Early Intervention Foundation to encourage progress in this area.

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