Did you know that Surestart is closing down?

[tillykins]

One of the sure start staff was telling me about it in detail, they were given the full decisions at the end of July
Basically, sure start is to be replaced by family centres but more downsized than they are now with a much reduced budget

Probably about 20% of the staff currently employed by sure start. Their remit will be correspondingly reduced so the children that have benefitted over the past few years, won't be able to continue to access the services. It is already being reduced in that staff that leave are not being replaced, from October they will start to make cuts and Surestart as it exists now will be gone in March 2007

I think its a disgrace, surestart has done a great deal of good, I know the nearest area to me had to work very hard to build up trust with the parents and they will now feel the rug has been pulled from under them. And there has been absolutely no public consultation, in fact, I can find very little in the news about it, its all rather sneaky IMO. Of course, surestart is most accessed by mums, particularly mums on a low income or on benefit - they don't have a lot of political clout

But the families of today who were helped by surestart, are the adults in 2 or 3 decades who aren't accessing the NHS for resources because of years of unhealthy living, who aren't on benefits with no visible skills because Sure Start helped their parents with diet information, health care, support and with training

But hey, the government aren't thinking that far ahead are they?
I am really disgusted by this, its such a shame that this programme is being removed, its done so much good, and provided such a good foundation


\link{http://www.thisislancashire.co.uk/news/localnews/display.var.846398.0.parents_blast_over_child_care _changes.php\this is all I could find newswise}

[tillykins]

oops! links hate me

try again

I have written to my MP to complain and ask for an explanation, but I bet the explanation is money

[PeachyClairHasBadHair]

My last position was funded by the local SureStart and I was warned that the scheme wasn't intended to be eprmanent, more a quick injection of hard cash followed by a lower maintenance system (Our surestart withdrew funding, fortunately after I had left, meaning our Homestart had to make almost everyone redundant. At the time I was told an estimate of 7 years, not sure how long it was in the long run.... 3 years to get it running, a year at optimum and then gradual switch over to longer term maintenance

[edam]

It's a terrible shame. One of the big differences was that Sure Start began as a local scheme - govt. money but given to people in the area to spend - they had to ensure parents were involved in the major decisions. No doubt family centres will be more about patronising people and monitoring us because mere amateurs can't be trusted to bring up their own children (unlike the 4 per cent of childcare that Ofsted says is dangerous... but hey, it's fine for the government to insist every mother goes out to work, whether she wants to or not).