Understanding the critical role of early years intervention – the future of Family Hubs in the UK
Adapted from a recent keynote speech given by the Rt Hon Robert Halfon at an HCRG event in Manchester, this series of blogs looks at lessons learned from different approaches to early years interventions. In his first two blogs, Robert looked at lessons learned from schemes in countries across the world, and the success stories we can find here in the UK. In this blog, he discusses what opportunities may become available to those working with Family Hubs in light of a new UK government.
Commissioning services
Before I turn to the opportunity we have to amplify our learnings and needs to the new government, I want to spend a minute focussing on one critical point: commissioning. In my last blog, we saw in Manchester that so much of their success is down to their collaborative approach to working alongside multiple agencies. However, I firmly believe that the way these services are commissioned also plays a fundamental role in how well early intervention can work.
Traditionally, local authorities identify a need for a service, usually in isolation of other service needs. They then put this out to tender and then procure a service based on value for money. Today, I believe that we desperately need to be much more dynamic in how we commission services. It can’t just be about a baseline value on a spreadsheet. Instead, we must put the needs of children, families and local communities at the heart of our procurement processes.
Take the West Essex partnership for example. This procurement process began with a consultation and involved the CCG and local authorities like Essex and Harlow right from the start. It began by identifying the issues and, most importantly, what outcomes that the community wanted to see from this service.
By aligning local providers and service delivery against the needs of the community – not just in isolation – they were able to bring people together to provide targeted and specialised provision which met the needs of the area to give children the best starts in life.
This demonstrates to me the incredible value of re-thinking the way we commission services. If we keep following the same rules, the same patterns, and the same traditional processes we’ll continue to hit the same barriers and miss out on the opportunities to really deliver for our children and young people. Instead, we must grasp the opportunities ahead of us and be bold in our approach to put the next generation at the heart of what we do.
New government, new opportunities
The recent general election presents us with an opportunity for change. We can already see the new education secretary Bridget Philipson’s drive to break down the barriers to opportunity for every child, and we can see her continued reference to her desire to improve the status and quality of our early years provision.
However, despite this drive for change, much of the government’s policy programme detail is still emerging, although I think we can glean some insights from their manifesto and recent statements.
Firstly, Labour has committed to expanding Family Hubs across the country. They’ve promised to open an additional 3,000 new school-based nurseries, create 100,000 new nursery places and introduce a new Young Futures programme in every community. These hubs are intended to “support young people’s mental health and avoid them being drawn into crime”.
The emphasis on mental health support is particularly noteworthy, with the government pledging to provide access to specialist mental health professionals in every school, so every young person has access to early intervention and support before they reach a crisis point.
Another key element of Labour’s offer is SEND. Their manifesto outlines a ‘community-wide’ approach which aims to improve inclusivity and expertise in mainstream schools while ensuring specialist schools can cater to those with the most complex needs.
And the final element of their programme for government is their planned work on early years quality. This includes a goal to deliver half a million more children hitting early learning goals by 2030, a new focus on supporting language skills and maths learning, and an early years numeracy drive to champion high-quality numeracy provision.
These are all laudable goals. We don’t need to re-invent the wheel – we know what works – instead, we just need an MOT of the system with a new change of tyres.
Changing lives for the better
The potential of 0-19 services and Family Hubs is immense. These services have the power to change young lives for the better and set them on the path to climb the ladder of opportunity.
However, there are challenges that they will face which need to be tackled head on in order to see success, including funding sustainability; workforce retirement and retention; reaching families most in need; and measuring impact. Integrating these services is also crucial to achieving long-term success.
Addressing these challenges will be critical to realising the full potential of Family Hubs. The evidence is clear that early intervention through initiatives have the power to transform lives and communities. By supporting children and families in these crucial early years we can improve health outcomes, boost educational attainment, increase social mobility and ultimately, build a more prosperous and equitable society.
As we move forward under the new government, it will be critical to engage with their policy development surrounding early years interventions. We have an opportunity now to get this right and to deliver the change we need to see. Success in those first 1,001 days will set children on a path to happier, healthier and more fulfilling lives. In doing so, we’ll be building stronger families, more resilient communities, and a brighter future for our entire country.
