When will we learn that supporting struggling families helps us all?

[Linedbook]

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/education-68763942

Rather than vilifying a struggling mother family why can't we as a country/population/community support them, saving money and improving outcomes in the long term?

Children from deprived households, living near a Sure Srart centre at 5yo, got getter GCSE results and fewer hospital admissions.

I'd like to see the same research for antisocial and criminal behaviour in their teens too. I'd bet there's a difference, but "we" don't vote for policies where our cash will be spent supporting poor or struggling families 😪

The closure of Sure Start centres was a huge mistake. I worked as a psychologist based in inner London Sure Start centres and saw the huge difference accessible, integrated support was beginning to make to the most vulnerable families in that community. I also used our local centre as a new mum with no family support nearby. It was universal service- there was something for everyone.

Now there is so little available to families until they reach crisis point (and even then, support is negligible.) If we had developed the Sure Start programme further, it could have made a massive difference to the long-term physical and mental health of our country.

I can’t remember much about these centres apart from some complaining that ‘middle class’ people were using them more than the poor and struggling people they were meant for.

Poor and struggling families won't be voting tory.

So the tories don't care about them.

Its simple.

Yes, I agree. I live in a deprived area, although didn't "need" the support myself, I did go along to the centres and like to think contributed a bit in providing some friendship and support to families who needed it. Appart from the professional support provided, it was a supportive way to get a community of families together.

But it feels to me, the majority want to vilify families who can't be perfect from the start, rather than supporting people with disadvantages or struggles.

Yes, I know that's my point. Why don't the other families recognise the importance of this for the whole community? If the poor and struggling families are better supported, that helps us all, by improving outcomes, reducing costs in supporting them later and (I suspect) reducing social problems.

That did happen, I went to them, when I didn't need them as such, but I'd say that was one of their strengths. The disadvantaged families who engaged (which wasn't all by any means but it was significant numbers) got to see another way. A proper mixed community.

Because for the past 13 years the government has been totally indifferent to the consequences of their actions. They don't care about public services because they don't use them and don't know anyone who has. The very rich have got even richer in recent years, should tell you all you need to know.

They were universal services, for everyone, whether they ‘needed’ them or not. And many middle class families did ‘need’ them. Especially those struggling with a newly diagnosed disabled child or post natal depression.

The centres I worked in were very much accessible to vulnerable families, who had different types of targeted support available (learning English, perinatal psychotherapy, support around disability, benefits advice.)

I absolutely loved working in Sure Start and many of the families in crisis I now see could have been supported at a much earlier stage and for a much lower cost if they still existed.

We used them too. DH did some fund raising for them and joined their committee. They were great.

Our children’s centre is still there and it’s invaluable. I really hope that the other parties pledge to bring them back.

But they do need to be re-elected, so by definition, no one else cares either. That's my point. Why doesn't the wider population/electorate realise supporting struggling families helps us all and reduces many of the issues they complain so vehemently about?

@CommeIlFaut I worked for Children’s Centres too.

In my LA they closed most of them, a few remained but not many for a massive city.

They are now opening"Family Hubs", they sound great, based in the most deprived areas, one stop shops for services, focusing on babies and under 5's, wonderful.

They're basically recreating Sure Start and mostly using the old Children’s Centre buildings my team set up or had built.

It's a brilliant project doing really important work, just like we did 20 years ago.

I'm really pleased it's happening but also furious they closed us down and now there's been a decade of children and families who didn't get the support they needed.

I had my dcs around the time of Sure Start and universal Child Benefit. I did not need any of this as a middle class parent but it was a lovely gesture for all the taxes I paid and continue to pay. Made me feel part of the community and larger society.

I would be happy to support struggling families more if means testing were not part of the deal. I know this will not be a popular view.

I can’t remember much about these centres apart from some complaining that ‘middle class’ people were using them more than the poor and struggling people they were meant for
The initial strategy was focused on the most 20-25% deprived areas but after that it was universalised.

The whole point was that there was a universal service. By being open to all, more people would be willing to access services because it was a service for all families. It also meant more integrated support could be given earlier and a rising tide lifts all boats. It's also cheaper to provide early support rather than wait to deal with bigger problems down the line.

I agree it works best when it's for everyone, removing stigma and making for a varied community, but why are you only prepared to support struggling families if the support is for you too?

Supporting struggling families helps us all (amd saves us tax money), by reducing demand on other services from hospitals, to extra education support, to criminal justice.

Struggling can also mean lots of things . We accessed speech thera through drop in sessions . It helped my son progress . I took my Ds to a music group when we were in a refuge , had a sure start worker for a while help my Ds with seperation anxiety . ( not your normal level ) and helped us eventually access funding for my Ds to go to nursery .

we did a cooking group , gardening group .

They were pretty amazing places .

I blame Protestantism. I know Britain isn’t an overtly Protestant or even religious society anymore but I think there are deeply ingrained ways of thinking that persist.
Mainly an idea that people are the masters of their own destiny. So if you work hard you will be rich (God shows you his favour). The flip side of this is that if you’re poor or have any other kind of struggles you have nothing but yourself to blame.

This kind of thinking gives you Tories. Unfortunately even many of the not-so-rich buy into it!

I was a single parent in the early 2000.s we did very well out of sure start . However some of the most troubled families I knew , wouldn’t engage with any of the activities, as they would only socialise with friends and family .

I can see why you're furious.
It's also a lot more efficient to keep something going than to have to rebuild from scratch, retrain new staff all at once, keep families in the habit of coming. Why haven't the conservatives 'conserved' any of the great projects that were happening?

Building schools for the future project had also rebuilt I think half of the schools that needed it and was ticking along great- even Michael Gove said later they shouldn't have axed it with austerity.

If you were taking over as governmnet wouldnt you rather have a note saying 'there's no money left' than 'there's no public services or infrastructure left' ?! How the hell do we come back from this absolute scorched earth shitshow?

Yes, you're never going to reach everyone, but reaching even 10% makes a difference. If you can reach 50% the impact is huge.

The closing of sure start was odd as it seemed to be universally liked by all voters. I live in a very conservative area and there was no talk of 'what a waste of money'. There was some minor talk about how ot wasnt actually helping the poor, just the middle classes and it would be better to help the poor in other ways though.

I had my kids when sure start was at its height and attended SS baby and toddler groups a couple of times a week for years. It was a lifeline and created a context to build self-sustaining supportive networks. It's bloody hard having small kids even if you are middle class. So delighted it's worth has finally been acknowledged - it may be a route back.

Actually, I don't think that's true anymore.

I was a middle class professional mum who used one, made a huge difference to my family - I had postnatal depression and there was a long process of having a baby diagnosed with disabilities.

I work with families and one of the biggest issues now is gate keeping, no one can get help unless they are almost past the point of helping. It’s an awful way to treat people.

The universal aspect of sure start meant that anyone could get help, early. It also meant that people from different backgrounds met and supported each other. I’m still friends with a teen mum I met at surestart.

Sadly by the time I stopped working for our local sure staff it was almost exclusively concerned with getting mums back to work and high risk safeguarding cases , which missed the point entirely. It’s now totally shut.

Sure start centres were great. They are missed greatly.
I think people do care, but everyone has their own hardship these days and it’s hard for working families to juggle everything, so the level of empathy has dropped as everyone is struggling not just families on benefits.