News
Sure Start services at risk
5 Nov 2010
Nursery World reports that a group of early years and family organisations have warned that Sure Start and services for children are at risk because of the decision to remove ring-fencing from local authority budgets.
Although funding for Sure Start Centres will be protected “in cash terms” experts fear that pressure on local authority budgets could lead to cutting of services. 4Children, National Children’s Bureau, National Childminding Association, Action for Children, Every Disabled Child Matters campaign and the National Autistic Society have all come out behind the warning.
In the same issue of Nursery World Sarah Teather, Minister for Children and Families, published an opinion piece about the spending review. In the piece Teather said that “supporting families and the most vulnerable in our society is at the heart of our vision for transforming early education”. She went on to acknowledge the importance of early intervention and reiterated the Government’s commitment to returning Sure Start to its “original purpose”. She also defended the removal of ring-fencing for Sure Start funding and said it would give “local authorities more flexibility and freedom over how they design services”.
Sarah Teather’s full opinion piece can be read on the Nursery World website.
(Nursery World, October 2010)
