Uppeldi og menntun - 01.07.2006, Page 101

101
programmes, Neighbourhood Nurseries and Early Ex­cellence Centres. However, the
Sure Start unit is also encouraging local authorities to think innovatively about how to
develop other local provision in the maintained, voluntary and private sectors. Since
the Children’s Centre programme is very much about building on ex­isting provision,
very few new Children’s Centres will be built from scratch.

Is t­he t­ravel in t­he right­ direct­ion?
We remain convinced that the overall direction and overarching policy priorities which
aim to develop universal, integrated services for all children and families in England
is absolutely right. The creation of a Children’s Centre in every neighbourhood, which
is open and accessible for all, seems to us to be socially and ethically just, and an
essential part of creating more inclusive, equitable and supportive communities. The
stakes are high in that we believe such centres do have the capacity to change life
chances and create different futures, particularly for the most vulnerable members of
our society.
Since New Labour came into Government in 1997 we have seen some fantastic and
radical step changes in policy and practice in early childhood. To list just some of
these:
1. The significant and sustained increases in investment in early years services to
support the ex­pansion and transformation agenda within the sector.
2. The legislation which establishes a statutory framework in which entitlements of
parents and children to funded early years services from birth is guaranteed, and
for the first time in half a century rolls forward the Welfare State.
3. The creation and consolidation of the Foundation Stage and Birth to Three Matt-
ers in the creation of the Early years Foundation Stage, which builds on recent
research and knowledge of child development and learning through the birth to
five age phase.
4. The establishment of a common starting point for all service delivery around the
5 outcomes for children set out in the Children act 2004.
5. The development of the workforce and a sustained concern to up-skill and up-
grade the profession in terms of qualifications, status and terms and conditions
of employment. also the work to re-shape the workforce to take account of the
integrated services agenda – all of which are long overdue.
BUT we also have some concerns about the current agenda:
• We feel that we are at a watershed where decisions have and are being made which
raise some BIG questions which we are not being given clarity over. We fear that
policy makers may prefer to see birth to fives as separate from the educational
agenda, and though development and learning are terms used within recent
documentation, the place of early education is rarely mentioned. We sense much
CHris­ Pas­Cal and tony­ Bertram­