Sure Start Children’s Centres provide integrated services for young children and their families. The Early Intervention Grant, announced in December 2010 following the Spending Review, contains enough money to maintain a network of children’s centres so they are accessible to all, and supporting families in greatest need.
The Department for Education and the Department of Health will be publishing a policy statement on the Early Years later in the year, setting out our vision for reform. The Department for Education Business Plan commits to working with local authorities to develop plans to increase voluntary and community sector involvement within Sure Start Children’s Centres, improve accountability arrangements, increase the use of evidence-based interventions, and introduce greater payment by results.
DfE is consulting on revised Sure Start Children's Centres Statutory Guidance so please give us your thoughts.
Good practice materials and case-studies for children’s centre leaders and local authority officers are available on the National College website.
The Department for Education is available to support local authorities with basic policy queries on children’s centres, but not provide detailed improvement support. Please email queries to: Earlyyears.mailbox
