Funding for early intervention services cut by 50 per child
Janaki Mahadevan
Wednesday, March 2, 2011
Funding for services including Sure Start children's centres and teenage pregnancy provision is being cut by an average of 50 per child in the next year, according to research commissioned by shadow education secretary Andy Burnham.
The House of Commons Library was asked by Burnham to find out how much funding would be available next year for each child from the early intervention grant compared to the funding available this year.
The early intervention grant is replacing 22 funding streams, some of which have already been hit by in-year spending cuts. The government claims that the value of the early intervention grant will be a 10.9 per cent reduction on the sum of the grants this year.
According to the research, some of the poorest areas such as Hackney and Knowsley will be hit with £100 reduction for each child.
"The Prime Minister made a personal promise to protect and build on Sure Start," Burnham said. "Now we know that these were just hollow words and yet another broken promise to the families of our country."
The figures showed that in some wealthier areas including Richmond, Buckinghamshire, Wokingham and Surrey, the cuts will be around £30 per child.
Overall, funding for early intervention services will be down by 22 per cent the data shows, challenging the government’s claims.
Burnham added: "The areas being hit hardest are the most deprived. It’s not only unfair, it’s the wrong long-term decision for the country. By cutting too far and too fast and asking children and families to bear the brunt, this Tory-led government is showing that they have no idea what pressure ordinary families are under."
