First 1,001 Days: ADCS view

However, a gap between policy and practice is opening up around school readiness and positive parenting, which cannot be met via the offer of ever-more hours of free childcare. 

Investment in the flagship free childcare policy is set to rise to an astonishing £6bn by 2020, however, the rates paid to providers do not guarantee quality and emerging evidence suggests the 30-hour offer may in fact entrench disadvantage by displacing children from non-working families who qualify for fewer hours. This ongoing focus on childcare rather than developing high-quality early education does seem somewhat at odds with the social mobility agenda. In these times of rising inequality and falling investment in public services, it's more important than ever that we spend our money wisely, for me this means much more funding being targeted towards those with the greatest need to affect a generational change. 

Growing up in a household experiencing material hardship increases exposure to risk factors, such as food insecurity and poor-quality housing, which can have a life-long impact on health and development too. Efforts to improve social mobility should not start when children are old enough to attend a grammar school, we know the best opportunity to close the attainment gap lies in the early years. 

There has been some movement on this front. Last autumn the government announced a range of measures aimed at improving school readiness and speech and language acquisition in the early years, including a new publicity campaign, new research, a peer review programme and £6.5m early outcomes fund for local authorities. While this renewed focus and some additional investment is welcome, I do worry that the absence of an overarching strategy could limit impact.

A far bigger prize would be all government departments routinely considering the effect of their policy decisions on children's lives. Did the Department for Work and Pensions consider how their welfare reforms might impact on children's development and their home learning environment, I wonder? 

I am pleased to see that in recent months three select committees have published the findings of inquiries into evidence-based interventions in the early years, disadvantage in the early years and the first 1,000 days of life respectively. Each report reinforced the need for a clear policy direction via the development of a national strategy. Other points raised included the limited reference to the early years in the government's social mobility action plan, growing workforce pressures and the continued closure of nursery schools and children's centres as a result of falling funding, despite clear evidence of impact.

We need to work with children and families who are at risk of poor outcomes at the earliest possible stage, yet our spending and interventions remain skewed towards reactive services despite evidence early help and support can improve children's health, development and life chances and make society both fairer and more prosperous. Unless we invest properly in parenting and the early years, I fear for the social, financial and human costs we are storing up for the future.