Commons Sense

House of Commons · Ministers' Questions

Early Years Support

Monday 14 March 2022 · 2 questions

Summarised by AI from the official record, so it can contain mistakes.

At a glance

Answered 0 Partly answered 2 Not answered 0

Key points

  • Tulip Siddiq questioned the closure of 1000 Sure Start centres by the current government.
  • The government stated that Sure Start was a good policy but poorly implemented under the Labour Government.
  • The government plans to announce half of England's local authorities having evidence-led, multi-agency family hubs.

Topics (select to filter)

Questions & Answers

Q1 Tulip Siddiq Lab Hampstead and Highgate
Context

The Labour Government built more than 3,600 Sure Start centres which provided essential services to families across the country. However, this government closed over 1,000 of these centres.

Question

The Labour Government built more than 3,600 Sure Start centres, which provided a vital lifeline for many families throughout the country. This Government proceeded to close 1,000 Sure Start centres and then undertook a review of the early years sector that found that every parent and child should have access to early years support. Frankly, I could have told the Government that without undertaking a review. The review was published more than a year ago and I have not yet seen any plans for or details on having a family hub in every community in the country.

Answer from Nadhim Zahawi

Sure Start was a good policy that was badly implemented under the Labour Government. They focused on bricks and mortar rather than reaching and helping families with the family hubs. We will announce very shortly the half of England's local authorities that will have evidence-led, multi-agency family hubs that will reach exactly those families.

Partly answered

Not addressed: Publication timeline for details on family hubs in every community

How: Sure Start Was A Good Policy But Poorly Implemented

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Q2 Tulip Siddiq Lab Hampstead and Highgate
Context

The Labour Government built more than 3,600 Sure Start centres which provided essential services to families across the country. However, this government closed over 1,000 of these centres.

Question

This Government proceeded to close 1,000 Sure Start centres and then undertook a review of the early years sector that found that every parent and child should have access to early years support. Frankly, I could have told the Government that without undertaking a review. The review was published more than a year ago and I have not yet seen any plans for or details on having a family hub in every community in the country.

Answer from Nadhim Zahawi

What was omitted is that Sure Start was a good policy but poorly implemented under the Labour Government. They focused on bricks and mortar rather than reaching families with family hubs. We will announce shortly half of England's local authorities having evidence-led, multi-agency family hubs to reach those families.

Partly answered

Not addressed: Publication timeline for details on family hubs in every community

How: Sure Start Was A Good Policy But Poorly Implemented

Was this summary accurate? Tell us

How accurate was this summary? (1 = poor, 5 = spot on)

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