Back to index of Nerve 20 - Summer 2012

Surestart – the cost of our futures

By Dawneey Warren
Image by Devon Elayne Murphy

I had very little need to know about Surestart before 2009. I knew little of its invention, its intent or its impact upon my community. I have quickly altered this state of unawareness and my child is now 3 years old. Through Surestart we have been supported and stimulated and we have learned so many things.

I know that my neighbour’s child was born the same week as mine, with similar births but with such different experiences and outcomes. I know how to check the progress of my child’s developmental stages, I know about the hidden sugars in supposed baby food.

I have received instruction in massaging my baby to help his digestion and sleep, had help with dealing with tantrums, illnesses and feeding. We have been on day trips where I met other mums and my child played with other children his own age.

I have learned some first aid for children; my little one has discovered the delights of getting messy with paints and Playdough. We have even undertaken yoga classes, dance & music classes together.

We have met owls and tarantulas, made fruit medleys, we have stuck and glued, stayed and played. We have even learned some words in Spanish, Somali and Arabic and English (so far) and we have learned to swim.

Not to mention some serious story telling and adventure making, and made good use of the toy library, etc. I have made friends and allies through Surestart and interacted with people whose genuine concern for my family’s wellbeing is encouraging. All this, I have discovered, is only the tip of the Surestart iceberg because they do so much more. They provide help where it is needed and bring a sense of fair play and equality to child services. No-one in need would be turned away.

They also provide nurseries, health visitor clinics, smoking cessation, special events for dads, etc. The list really does go on.

Some days it has been a life-saver. My child’s world opened up to new and exciting experiences. I felt supported and safe in the knowledge that there was somewhere for me to turn in times of need, advice, and support. At the same time my child was supplied with an array of entertainments, stimulations, educational fun activities and safe play spaces.

The benefits of such great opportunities at the start of my child’s life are immeasurable. How fortunate we are. Did I mention all this was for free? (Do bring a packed lunch if you’re staying.)

Then the banking crisis reared its ugly head so far out the parapet that it wasn’t to be ignored anymore.

How does a culture of soured sub-prime mortgages affect my family’s ability to receive health, welfare, advice or educational activities?

Well, we are all aware of this journey from boom to bust that our country is experiencing (frankly that’s not the focus of this piece). But so much is at stake now. So much is at risk of being lost for generations to come.

Coalition cuts to budgets have hit Surestart hard. Sure, everyone’s getting hit by these austerity cuts, but how many of them are directly putting our poorest children’s futures in decline?

Action against child poverty ought to be (in my humble opinion) high on the political agenda and it is widely plaudited that early intervention is good value for money. So why decimate those services that are directly (and successfully) addressing the issue?

It would appear that the cuts are extremely myopic (but hey, we all know this). What concerns me most here is that the true effect of this won’t be seen for another 5 – 10 years when we have even more children struggling under the conditions of severe poverty. When we will have turned a generation back. We will have let down many, many children, denying them such experiences and support that, as a family, they couldn’t do alone because they simply couldn’t afford it, or that they are not functioning as healthily as they could be because they weren’t supported and encouraged.

Liverpool has 26 centres, used by thousands of children and families. Although the plans are not to close the actual centre buildings but to limit their services in such a way that reduces the target percentage of the poorest 30% to a meagre 3%, and subsequently those hardest to reach. That’s immense.

So, they can only really target that bottom 3% of the poorest families and they are struggling in a current of overwhelming need. How can they be expected to function effectively?

It seems a ridiculous proposition to deny children the chance of a decent start in life when the money is still there (albeit disguised as ring-fenced for vital developments) like the highly opposed HS2 rail link, which is costing us £32.7bn. Allegedly it is forward thinking for our economy – to invest this amount to reap back £45bn in revenue. Well, Surestart services are about investing in our future society, our children’s futures. What is that worth?

Were we not told that we are “All in this together”? Or that the reason these countrywide swingeing cuts in public services are taking place is so that our children do not bear the brunt of the national debt? Surely then, that makes the ‘hollowing out’ of Surestart services a pointless task. Our poorest children are most definitely bearing the brunt of it!

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