NO
John Fowler, director, Sheerness Children and Families Centre
Families must feel valued and welcomed in children's centres in order for us to make a difference. Once we compel people to attend we will have lost the very essence of what we are trying to achieve. We must make our centres attractive to everybody and particularly to the most marginalised families. If that means discouraging those who don't need to be there so that those who do need to be there can feel at ease, then let's deal with that immediately.
NO
Kate Goddard, senior policy and research officer, Daycare Trust
The priority for Sure Start must continue to be disadvantaged families, but the whole point of the programme is to provide services in a non-stigmatising way. Many Sure Start children's centres serve disadvantaged communities very effectively, and compulsion will only serve to alienate people. The focus should be on good outreach to hard-to-reach families, both via professionals and via peer group mechanisms such as "parent champions", who act as advocates and peer advisers in their community.
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