News
New research from the Marmot review finds nearly half of 5-year-olds are not attaining a good level of development.
16 Feb 2011
One year on from the publication of Fair Society, Healthy Lives the Marmot review have published new research which found that nearly half, 44%, of five-year-olds are not considered to have a good level of development by their teachers.
Sir Michael Marmot, who led the research, has reiterated his support for the early years,
The evidence is very clear: investing in pre-school years pays most dividends. We already know that by the age of ten a child from a poorer background will have lost any advantage of intelligence indicated at 22 months, whereas a child from an affluent family will have improved his or her cognitive scores purely because of his/her advantaged background.
The Coalition Government is working in the right direction by transferring the responsibility for preventing ill health to local authorities. We need to ensure that local authorities invest money and expertise to ensure long-term reductions in health inequalities.
The full report can be found on the Marmot review website.
