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Families living in poverty struggling to access early childhood services

The government must embrace upcoming opportunities to improve access to local early childhood services.

  • Families on low incomes1 in the UK are missing critical support as they face challenges accessing maternity, health visiting and family hubs, according to our new report with UNICEF UK.
  • Services are often limited, hard to reach, under resourced or unable to support the needs of families experiencing financial hardship.
  • Charities call on the government’s new Child Poverty Taskforce to take action to improve access to early childhood services and reduce the impact of poverty on babies and young children.

Families experiencing poverty face barriers to accessing early childhood services at every level in the UK, according to a new report by us and the UK Committee for UNICEF (UNICEF UK).

The report, Opening Doors: access to early childhood services for families impacted by poverty in the UK2, draws from an evidence review and new research with 30 parents and carers who are experiencing poverty and raising children under the age of five, as well as 12 early childhood professionals.

Poverty can have a negative impact on a young child’s development, increasing their likelihood of ill health, poor mental health, and putting them at a disadvantage before they start school.

But access to high quality early childhood services, such as maternity, health visiting and integrated support in children’s centres or family hubs can significantly reduce these inequalities and provide a lifeline for families on low incomes.

Read the report

One mother told researchers:

“It’s so overwhelming and I haven’t got much food, I haven’t got enough for the kids, but then if someone supports you and points you in the right direction… it’s like a godsend if they tell you that’s available and you’re full of anxiety because you’re on your last £5 and you’ve got children and when they’re telling you towards the right directions that’s amazing, they’re doing the right thing.”

Meanwhile, a public health professional said:

“We know if they’ve got their foot in the door there [at the children’s centre], then that immediately opens up… all these other different support offers that are available.”

Effects on early childhood service professionals and parents

Evidence shows that early childhood service professionals are under huge amounts of pressure, often working in unsupportive environments due to shortages of midwives and health visitors.

The report found this shortage results in:

  • a lack of outreach
  • rushed appointments
  • a different professional at each contact, which can damage relationships with parents and leave them unable to discuss sensitive issues around their financial circumstances.

One mother said:

“It’s really difficult when they change your midwives all the time and change your health visitor, and they change where you’re going for appointments.”

Other practical barriers for parents included not being able to attend services due to transport costs, navigating complicated services, or not being able to follow advice due to a lack of money or resources.

Parents ultimately feared stigma and judgement when opening up about financial struggles.

One mother said:

“I still find that there’s judgment and that stigma to say, ‘How can you bring up a child if you can’t manage your finances?' And things like that, I just feel like there’s that stigma attached to it.”

Read the report

Opportunities to improve access

We believe that the upcoming UK-wide Child Poverty Strategy and the 10 Year Health Plan in England offer crucial opportunities for the government to improve access to local early childhood services and ensure they are inclusive of families on low incomes.

They also want to see the government invest in rebuilding midwifery and health visiting workforces as well as rolling out integrated services like family hubs across the country. This requires additional investment to address the shortfalls of 2,500 full-time midwives and 5,000 full-time health visitors in England by 2030.

Vicky Nevin, Policy Manager at the NSPCC and co-author of the report, said:

“Midwives, health visitors and other professionals provide support that can make a real difference for parents who want to do the best for their young children but are struggling with money.

“Worryingly, our research shows that service doors are often closed, hard to reach, or out of touch with the needs of families impacted by poverty. This poses serious risks to the health, wellbeing and safety of little ones.

“Early childhood services should be top of the agenda when the Child Poverty Taskforce next meets this December. It is vital for the government to rebuild and reform services that provide quality support to all babies, young children and their families.”

Rebecca Jacques, UNICEF UK Senior Policy Advisor, and report co-author said:

“Early childhood services like midwifery, health visiting, and children’s centres, provide a lifeline for parents and young children. These vital services can help children have the very best start by identifying any risks early on and promoting healthy development.

“But our research shows that parents living on low incomes face barriers at every turn when trying to access these services. Without high-quality support, we risk too many babies and young children falling behind.

“It is crucial that the UK Government’s upcoming child poverty and health strategies prioritise early childhood services, so that they can fulfill their role in mitigating the impacts of poverty to make sure every young child has the best chance of a happy and healthy life.”

Read the report

Worried about a child?

You can contact the NSPCC Helpline by calling 0808 800 5000, emailing help@NSPCC.org.uk or completing our report abuse online form.

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References

  1. 1. Low income refers to relative poverty which is defined as below 60% of the median income. Thresholds for parents participating in the research were calculated using the same methodology that the UK Government uses.

  2. 2. Opening Doors: access to early childhood services for families impacted by poverty in the UK takes a mixed methods approach to gain a deeper understanding of the experiences of families on low incomes in relation to accessing early childhood services. The context of this report sets out existing evidence. The findings include new qualitative data from focus groups and interviews with parents, as well as interviews with a range of early childhood professionals and practitioners. Polling conducted with parents and carers is also included throughout.