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The Sure Start programme began over 5 years ago and by 2005 there were 188 centres dedicated to improving early years provision in some of the country’s most deprived areas. The success of the scheme has led to the government’s announcement that an ambitious 3500 Sure Start Children’s Centres are to be up and running by 2010, offering more community-wide access to a range of public services under one roof.

Authorities will be spending a lot of time and money on ensuring the services and support they provide in the expanding Children’s Centres run smoothly.

But the crucial task that must not be overlooked is the need to find out whether these services are actually making a difference to children’s lives.

Delivery of Services
The success of Children’s Centres will be closely scrutinised by central government. Authorities will be expected to provide regular and detailed information on who is accessing the centres, what services they are using and how effectively those services are meeting the needs of the community as a whole. There will be a particular focus on ensuring so-called hard-to-reach groups, such as lone parents, ethnic minorities and people with disabilities and special needs are getting the help and support they need.

Improving Outcomes for Children
The driving force behind the rise of Children’s Centres is the overwhelming need to improve outcomes for children in line with the Every Child Matters agenda. Authorities will need to be able to determine whether a play scheme for under-fives is helping a child enjoy and achieve, for example. If not, the reasons behind this need to be investigated so that services can be targeted more effectively.

The Power Behind the Numbers
Underpinning all of this will be the need for a sophisticated yet easy to use technological system that has the capability to ensure up-to-the-minute data can be collected quickly and efficiently from multiple sites. Authorities will need to be confident that the information they are collecting from Children’s Centres is accurate so that it can be used to inform decisions on future service provision.

At Worcestershire County Council, for example, timely, easy access to data at every level is proving an essential cornerstone in the delivery and evaluation of services for children. To quote the council’s Children’s Centre Monitoring Officer, Chris Dance, “If we don’t have access to co-ordinated, personalised data we can not report to government standards. Children’s Centres are about making a measurable difference to lives. You cannot follow up an anonymous statistic or use it to demonstrate the impact of a Children’s Centre.�

This monitoring and evaluation will be fundamental in defining whether Children’s Centres are ensuring children and their families are getting the support they need, when they need it.

www.capita-cs.co.uk