The last few months have seen a positive recognition of the importance of early intervention, with reports from Graham Allen MP, Frank Field MP, Professor Eileen Munro and Dame Clare Tickell all highlighting the importance of early support.
As a result we are now recognising as a nation that the first few years of life are the most important for children and families. This important and insightful work has led to the formation of the Foundation Years policy launched this week which, if successfully delivered, has the potential to place England at the forefront of its European partners in presenting a coherent approach to the provision of support for families in order to give their children the best start in life.
Over the past decade, large scale investments in early education and children’s centres have led to real increases in support for young children and their families. Increasingly, these important services are becoming seen as a key element of the architecture of support for families.
From midwives and health visitors to early years practitioners and social workers, the ambition is that professionals will work together in a more harmonised approach so that parents will be able to expect co-ordinated support for themselves and their children and a good early education when their children are very young.
The investment in these services to date is key, and this positive focus and recognition of the importance of early years can only strengthen the arguments for further investment for the sector in the near future.
Especially for parents
As part of these new developments, 4Children is today launching a new online gateway, Families in the Foundation Years: From pregnancy to children age 5, backed by the government and aimed at offering parents a one stop shop for information on pregnancy and the first 5 years of their child’s life.
In conjunction with the launch, the Children’s Minister, Sarah Teather, is publishing two new foundation years policy documents - one for parents and families and the other for professionals working with young children - setting out the government’s vision for the coming years.
The new website, www.foundationyears.org.uk, is taking the blueprint set out in the policy document and transforming it into useful and accessible information setting out parents' expectations and entitlements. It provides advice from recognised experts in the foundation years sector and is presented in a parent-friendly, comprehensive and authoritative form.
The site systematically takes mothers and fathers through what they can expect to encounter during pregnancy and the first five years of their child’s life, explaining what support and services they are entitled to in each phase of the child’s development.
The information for parents is divided into six sections related to the different stages of early childhood: preparing for parenthood, caring for newborns, helping your baby develop, encouraging independence, enjoying early education and joining reception class.
As well as being given advice, parents will be signposted to the best sources of help available on other websites. Families in the Foundation Years will function as a reference point for parents rather than a meeting point, but it links to online discussion on other sites such as Netmums and DadTalk. Key elements of the website’s concept include:
- Explaining how children develop in the important first five years of life
- Providing information for mothers and fathers about all stages from pre-birth to school
- Linking to a host of external websites including BabyCentre, Baby Chaos, BBC, Best Beginnings, BirthChoiceUK, Contact a Family, DadTalk, Daycare Trust, Directgov and other government websites, Doula UK, Dr Miriam Stoppard, Family and Parenting Institute, Fatherhood Institute, Gingerbread, healthvisitors.com, Hello, Home-Start, Mumsnet, NAFIS, NCB, NCMA, NCT, NDNA, National Literary Trust, Netmums, NHS, Pre-school Leaving Alliance, Relate, Talk to Your Baby and The Centre for Separated Families.
From September, the site will also launch the professionals’ gateway with access to information and materials and directing them to the best resources in the sector. We will keep practitioners up to date with a calendar of events nationwide and a feed of the latest sector news. There will also be forums for debate and discussion between professionals across the sector.
Families in the Foundation Years is the result of the strategic partnership between the government and the foundation years sector. The overall ambition of this new initiative is to improve outcomes for children that will continue into later life in line with the latest research which categorically states that a child’s experiences in the early years are a predictor of future learning and life chances.
4Children wants the site to provide an online interface where parents and the sector come together, and will be working closely with its sector partners to get the word out about the new website to all those supporting children and families day in, day out.
This is one of the most important times for all families. Putting all the best possible information into one easily accessible place to help is a great place to start.