The Children's Charities Coalition is made up of five highly valued children's charities: Action for Children, Barnardo's, The Children's Society, National Children's Bureau and the NSPCC. In 2023, the group put together a report calling for the government to provide more funding for early years intervention. This is prominent now with the new Labour government's promising a reform of children's education and early years provisions.
Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson says:
- Labour will deliver the enhanced entitlements the government have offered, saving thousands of pounds a year for working families.
- Labour will support three quarters of a million more parents to re-enter the labour market.
- Labour will provide free breakfast clubs in every primary school in England, paid for by ending tax loopholes and clamping down on tax evasion.
The report: Struggling against the tide: Children's services spending, 2011-2023 calls for the government to invest more into "early intervention services" for children and young people.
The report's findings detail that since 2010/11 the amount councils in England spent on early intervention services almost halved from £4bn to £2.2bn in 2022-23.
The report asks the government to:
- Make sure all families can access integrated family support services.
- Provide targeted support for families experiencing multiple challenges.
- Ensure all communities have the services required to meet the needs of children and families in their area.
Child poverty, the mental health crisis, and years of financial struggles within local authorities have exacerbated a vicious cycle of decline in early help when it is needed most. With the hopes of a new system and better funding in early years, the Children's Charities Coalition urge for the government to reflect on investment for preventative early intervention services and create a sustained approach to eradicating child poverty in the budget on the 30th October.
Lynn Perry, MBE- CEO of Barnardo's says:
'We are stuck in a vicious cycle, with less and less support for children and families, just as rising poverty and poor mental health mean they are needed more than ever.'
Our 50 Things Team comments:
We at 50 Things to Do acknowledge the current financial restrictions within early years and are anticipating hopeful news from the government regarding funding. We believe this is needed to help our sector improve.
We stand by our 50 Things to Do initiative as accessible for all families as our activities are all low or no cost. We are constantly working for better life chances for children and believe the new government's investment could make a dramatic difference to the sector. We continue our ongoing work within localities, and our reach is rapidly growing with 26 Commissioning partners across the UK keeping children's play and learning alive.
To read the Children's Charities Coalition report, click here.
SHARE ON SOCIAL MEDIA