Early Years Alliance comments on Best Start Family Hub SEND support announcement

Neil Leitch, CEO of the Early Years Alliance, commented:

“We know that when it comes to supporting children with SEND, early intervention is crucial. As such, we welcome the news that SEND support will be available across all Best Start Family Hubs as part of their nationwide rollout.

“That said, we're clear that this initiative must be part of a much wider focus on SEND support in the early years. We know from our own research that while early years settings do their very best to meet the needs of all children in their care, a continued lack of adequate funding – alongside protracted and overly-complex funding application processes – often make this much harder than it needs to be.

“As such, while it is positive to see government recognising the need to act early when it comes to SEND, it is critical that this approach is extended to the wider early years sector. That means ensuring that nurseries, pre-schools and childminders can access the funding and support they need to deliver the best possible care and education to children with SEND and their families.”