Plan for Change: ‘If early years is key for the PM, we need a revamped Sure Start’

Prime Minister Keir Starmer will set out his Plan for Change this week, outlining how his government plans to deliver on its key missions.

One of these missions is ‘education and opportunity’, and the Prime Minister is expected to hone in on the early years in his speech on Thursday.

This is welcome news, with only 60% of children “ready for school”, both educationally and socially, when starting their first term at the ages of four or five.

Crucially, this is an area that represents an opportunity for this Labour government to set out its stall as the Party that is putting families first, and to ensure better outcomes for the next generation.

Labour’s Sure Start legacy

Sure Start was seen as world-leading and is widely regarded as one of the previous Labour government’s major success stories.

Evaluations from the University of Oxford and more recently the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) show that access to Sure Start centres at a young age gave children a strong foundation for success, with outcomes including higher GCSE grades. An April 2024 report showed that educational outcomes were most improved for students from lower-income households, and for students from minority ethnic backgrounds.

The evidence also shows that Sure Start made economic sense. The same IFS report showed that for every £1 the government spent on Sure Start, the benefits to educational outcomes alone were worth £1.09. That is before we even take into account the potential benefits to physical and mental health, and parental employment.

This government is committed to showing itself to be fiscally responsible. The right early years policy can kill two birds with one stone – improving support for families while also saving the taxpayer money on costly, later interventions.

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Labour’s golden opportunity

Our team at Triple P carries out a survey of family support practitioners every year. These practitioners work with thousands of parents from across the UK on a range of challenges.

This year’s data shows clearly that, in addition to the challenges the government plans to tackle in education, more support is urgently needed to help children build resilience beyond the classroom.

Our survey showed that over a twelve-month period, 90% of practitioners reported an increase in parents highlighting issues with their children’s mental health. As many as 85% of practitioners also cited a rise in parents reporting worries over the cost of living.

Crucially, 78% of practitioners stated that parents were not accessing support due to stigma and the fear of being judged. More than 50% also cite a lack of local resources and proven online support as being significant barriers for parents.

All of this has given Sir Keir Starmer a golden opportunity.

Things might look bleak, but in crisis lies opportunity. This is the moment for the government to make an emphatic statement that the educational development and social, emotional, and mental well-being of parents and children is at the heart of its plan for the people of Britain.

READ MORE: Plan for Change: ‘Voters will reward Labour in 2029 if Starmer fixes public services’

Committing to Family Hubs funding, and beyond

We at Triple P know from the practitioners and parents we work with how important Family Hubs and Children’s Centres can be as a one-stop shop to provide support for parents.

The promise therefore of a greater focus on “family hubs, health visiting, and really targeted support for the children who need it” will do much to allay the sector’s concerns around future funding for the programme.

A key component to the success of Sure Start was evidenced-based parenting programmes, if this Labour government wants to emulate the success of the last Labour administration and go further, they should guarantee access to parenting support that is proven to make a difference.

We know that the Prime Minister and his cabinet take a keen interest in the measures the Australian government puts in place. Australia is the torch bearer for forward-thinking policies that extol the virtues of positive parenting being essential in helping children to thrive and lead happy and healthy lives.

The government could follow Australia’s blueprint by also launching universal access to support for parents via a nationwide rollout of online parenting programmes. These programmes have reached hundreds of thousands of parents in Australia to date and been an emphatic success, with parents and carers reporting feeling calmer, more confident, and having a better understanding of their children’s needs.

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Addressing the postcode lottery

Pat McFadden is quoted in The Sunday Times on Labour’s commitment to tackling regional inequalities in early years provision, saying “It’s really important…to our Labour government, because we don’t believe that the circumstances into which children are born should dictate their life chances.”

McFadden specifically cited areas like Manchester and Burnley, where two in five children aren’t reaching the required level of educational and social development, compared to one in four in Richmond upon Thames.

This matches the Department of Education’s own internal analysis, which showed outcomes may have worsened in areas with fewer non-statutory funding and interventions such as Family Hubs and Start for Life.

By only applying these schemes to 75 local authority areas, the previous government created a postcode lottery of services. Separate research suggests that outcomes for disadvantaged children who live in affluent areas are worse than their peers living in lower socio -economic disadvantaged areas.

The solution to this seems clear, and that is to commit to rolling out  parenting and family support in the early years in every local authority, and ensuring universal access to this is the best way to ensure every child can fulfil their potential.

The case for comprehensive early years provision

The evidence is compelling. A comprehensive programme of family support in the early years will have better outcomes for children, parents and even for the exchequer. Sir Keir Starmer has an opportunity to seize the moment, and to show Labour is the party for parents.

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