IFS report notes the health and education benefits of Sure Start centres for children
by Jess Gibson
Sure Start centres had a “remarkably long-lasting” positive impact on the health and education outcomes of children who had access to a centre in their early years, according to a report by the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS).
The report analyses both the short- and medium-term effects of Sure Start centres on children who had access to them – in terms of health, education, socio-emotional and behavioural outcomes – tracing their impact from early childhood through adolescence.
Access to a Sure Start centre is defined by the IFS report as “living within a pram-pushing distance of 2.5km of a centre” for most outcomes, but, for health outcomes and hospitalisation data, it is defined as “the number of centres within a local authority (per 1000 children from birth to age four)".
The report highlights that Sure Start centres:
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had a “remarkably long-lasting” impact on children and young people’s health and education outcomes.
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had mixed impacts on socio-emotional and behavioural outcomes.
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benefitted a range of groups, but particularly children from disadvantaged areas, the health outcomes of boys in adolescence, and both the educational and behavioural outcomes of children from “non-white ethnic backgrounds”.
As such, the report concludes that the long-term benefits of access to Sure Start centres are “likely to significantly exceed costs”, with there being £2 of financial benefits generated for every £1 spent.
The full report can be found .
Commenting Neil Leitch, CEO of the Early Years Alliance, said: “This research reinforces what those of us in the early years have long known: that children’s centres play an absolutely critical role in improving children’s life chances, especially those from more disadvantaged backgrounds.
"As the IFS rightly points out, this kind of integrated early support has a positive impact not only on the children accessing the services, but on society as a whole in the longer term. Clearly, then, investing in quality integrated early years services is not just the right moral decision, but a smart economic choice, too.
"At a time when the government has rightly made giving children the best possible start in life a policy priority, we urge ministers to take note of these findings and, as they look to develop their forward early years strategy, ensure that the critical role of children’s centres is not overlooked."