Abstract

Introduced in 1999, Sure Start was the first large government initiative to provide holistic support to families with children under the age of 5 in England. The policy introduced a network of local ‘one-stop shops’, which brought together a range of services to support local families with the aim of enhancing the development and life chances of children under 5. These services included health services, parenting support, early learning and childcare, and parental employment support.

Over the decade during which it was rolled out, Sure Start became an increasingly important element of the early years policy landscape in England and shifted from an initiative initially targeted at the most disadvantaged areas to a universal programme. At its peak in 2010–11, the programme received a third of the total early years budget and had a network of close to 3,500 centres throughout the country.

The change in government in 2010 brought a change of focus in early years policy – moving away from Sure Start and towards increasingly expanding funding for subsidised childcare to support parental employment. Between 2010 and 2022, funding for Sure Start decreased by over two-thirds and over 1,340 centres closed. The recent introduction of Family Hubs and the Start for Life offer points to renewed policy interest in integrated or joined-up family support programmes to support children’s outcomes, starting in the very earliest days of life. As these initiatives take shape, it is critical that they draw on lessons from Sure Start.

Despite the importance of Sure Start in the history of early years policy in England, little evidence about the impacts of the programme was known when critical policy decisions about the future of the programme were made, but research has been accumulating to better understand whether and how Sure Start served families.

This talk presents some of the latest evidence on the short- and medium-term impacts of the programme on children’s outcomes.