What do Sure Start do?
Sure Start is a programme targeted at parents and children under the age of four living in the most disadvantaged areas. Sure Start projects deliver a wide variety of services which are designed to support children’s learning skills, health and well-being, and social and emotional development.
What is a sure start Centre?
Sure Start centres give help and advice on child and family health, parenting, money, training and employment. Some centres also provide early learning and full day care for pre-school children. Contact your local council to find out about Sure Start centres in England.
Who cut Sure Start?
The Sure Start children’s centres programme, introduced in 1999 by the last Labour government, has had its spending cut by two-thirds since 2010 and more than 500 centres have officially been closed.
When was sure start introduced in the UK?
1998
Launched in 1998, Sure Start was driven by local partnerships of voluntary groups, parents and local authorities in the most deprived areas. Apart from five core areas including outreach services, play and healthcare, local programmes offered services based on locally-defined needs.
Is Sure Start effective?
The study found no evidence that Sure Start helped reduce child obesity among five-year-olds or improved maternal mental health, although it added that data limitations should not be taken as evidence that there was no effect in reality.
What happened to Sure Start Centres?
In February 2017, all 44 Sure Start children’s centres in Oxfordshire were closed after High Court appeals against the measure failed. Ministers said they want to refocus the scheme to help the most disadvantaged families.
How are Sure Start Centres run?
The centres were planned, delivered, and run by local authorities, and financed by a ring-fenced grant from central government. ‘Together for Children’, a bespoke delivery partner organisation, provided further support to local authorities and ensured progress towards the target.
When did Sure Start Centres open?
It was launched in 1999 as an area-based programme to deliver services and support to young children and their families, with £450 million (m) in funding in the first three years. 1 It was initially targeted at the 20% poorest wards in England. young children and families.