Councils have learned that they will receive cuts of as much as 20 per cent of their funding earmarked for children’s centres, short breaks for disabled children, other services for children and families, and the Government’s troubled families programme.
Councils are only now learning of the impact of the cuts as they begin to receive more details of their budgets for 2013/14.
The crux of the matter appears to be changes to the way that local authorities will be financed from next April, leading to a loss of funding for early intervention and the abolition of the Early Intervention Grant.
Under reforms set out in a ‘technical consultation’ by the Department for Communities and Local Government, the EIG will be split, so that part of its funding is rolled into the Dedicated Schools Grant – this includes funding for two-year-olds – and the remaining funding will be amalgamated with other grants.
Graham Allen, the Labour MP who led the Government’s review of early intervention, has written to the Prime Minister asking for clarification and warning of the ‘serious impact’ of cuts to the EIG and under-funding of the expansion for places for disadvantaged two-year-olds.
Mr Allen said, ‘To top-slice the EIG to provide these places is extremely shortsighted as the EIG funds the very necessary complementary family support and health provision that families with multiple needs require to be able to strengthen their resilience and more effectively support their children through their early years.’
Bradford City Council, which has so far succeeded in keeping all of its Sure Start children’s centres is set to lose as much as £6.8m from the EIG next year, equivalent to a cut of 21 per cent.
Islington stands to lose around £2.4m in 2013.14 and £0.6m in 2014/15.
Anne Longfield, chief executive of 4Children, said, '4Children are alarmed to hear today that the Government may be backing away from its commitment to early intervention, by cutting the Early Intervention Grant which funds children’s centres alongside other core services for young people’s learning, development, health and wellbeing by as much as £150 million. That the Government is planning to abolish the Early Intervention Grant itself entirely next year only adds to our concern.
'These proposed changes pose very real risks to both the future of Sure Start Children’s Centres in England, and the wider move to earlier help. Removing the obligation on local authorities to invest in early intervention is potentially putting key services at risk which will cost the country more in the long run.
'4Children is calling on the Government to guarantee a ring-fenced early intervention fund, with a commitment to cyclical growth, for the remainder of the Parliament. We also need an urgent explanation of where the £150m reduction is planned to be spent, and a commitment that it will be reallocated to local authorities if it is not to be invested in early intervention programmes.'
A Department for Education spokesperson said, ‘We have a long standing commitment to roll out free early education to two year olds – revenue funding for it increases each year until 2014-15 and was confirmed in last year’s autumn statement.
‘A total of £760 million will be spent on this entitlement in 2014-15. This will allow more than a quarter of a million two year olds to benefit from 15 hours of free early education a week.’