Education: Early Years

Baroness Jenkin of Kennington Excerpts

Thursday 8th November 2012 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Jenkin of Kennington]

My Lords, while preparing for this most welcome debate, so ably introduced by my noble friend Lady Walmsley, my mind was inevitably drawn back to my own children's early days, months and years for a wallow in nostalgia and to what seems—possibly with the benefit of hindsight and through rose-tinted spectacles—a productive and happy period, for them and for me. Any of us lucky enough to have children of our own will know that being a parent—even with the support that I had, with two wonderful grandmothers and a pretty good grandfather in the shape of my noble kinsman Lord Jenkin of Roding, and plenty of good advice from my sister and other friends who had already had children—is hard. Even for those of us who are well resourced and well supported it is difficult to know whether we are doing the right thing and bringing up our children in the right way. For those without resources and support, these challenges must feel insurmountable.

In order to put the topic of this debate in context I will concentrate the majority of my remarks on early years development—by expanding on a number of the points made by the noble Baroness, Lady Walmsley—and on how without support a child's future can be negatively impacted. In these remarks I would like to pay tribute to the campaigning work and research undertaken by colleagues in another place—by Graham Allen, already mentioned, and by Andrea Leadsom and Frank Field—all of whom have been leading the debate by championing the cause of early intervention.

Increasingly research is showing that it is the earliest days, weeks, months and years of a child's life—and indeed even their time in the womb—that shapes their brain's development and has a lifelong impact on their emotional and mental health. While it does not, of course, excuse criminal or antisocial behaviour, evidence shows that it goes some way to explaining why some children are more liable to end up in a cycle of antisocial and criminal behaviour if they were not given the love, care and attention that children require in their early years.

There are three main benefits in recognising the importance of early years intervention. The first is that prevention is cheaper than cure. By ensuring children that are well cared for and educated when they are young we can reduce problems in later life. The second is that it benefits the country greatly through increased achievement and a fall in antisocial behaviour; and thirdly, by addressing the issue for current generations it breaks the cycle for their children, which will reduce future problems.

Babies are born with large parts of their brains underdeveloped. The social part of the brain only starts to develop at around six months and the height of development for this part of the brain is between six to 18 months old. It is during this very early period that children learn the capacity to be part of a caring relationship and develop mental and emotional stability. Needless to say, good quality brain development is the key prerequisite to good development. If enough importance is not given to this vital lesson, through love and care, these attachments are not formed by the baby and this hinders their emotional capability.

The effective provision of pre-school education project—EPPE, an Oxford University-based early years research project—has found that what parents do is more important than who they are when determining child outcomes. This means that their actions rather than their circumstances are more important when it comes to influencing child development outcomes. Crucial, too, in the jargon, is the home learning environment—activities that take place in the home that aim to stimulate good development. These include reading to children, singing songs and learning through play. Child IQ and key stage 1 attainment is significantly associated with the presence of books and toys in the household. It is the home learning environment which, as evidence shows, is the single most important factor influencing children’s outcomes at age three and five.

Research also suggests that in Britain up to 40% of children are not securely attached by the age of five. This affects their emotional and mental capacities and means that they will struggle to form strong attachments to their own babies.

I would like to share some shocking figures with you. Research shows that 80% of long-term prison inmates have attachment problems that stem from babyhood. There is now evidence to suggest that you can predict two-thirds of future chronic criminals by behaviour seen at the age of two. A New Zealand study showed that a child with substantial antisocial behaviour aged seven would have a 22-fold increased chance of criminality by the age of 26.

Keeping an adult in prison costs around £112 a day, and each looked-after child costs the taxpayer around £347 a day. If, through intervening during the early years—whether this be through increased NHS awareness of the importance of early years education, increasing the quality of childcare and education in nurseries, or teaching parents, especially very young ones, how best to educate, care for and love their children in early years—we can prevent criminal behaviour and save taxpayers’ money. Does my noble friend the Minister not agree that this is worth considering?

Let us look at how early years education and experiences impact on future behaviour. For example, a baby that is not cared for emotionally and educationally will experience raised levels of the stress hormone cortisol. Excessive amounts of this can damage the baby’s immune system, and there is also evidence to suggest that a baby left to scream throughout babyhood will have a higher tolerance to stress, meaning that in later life they will be more attracted to high risk-taking behaviour than a baby who has only a normal level of cortisol. There is evidence to suggest, for example, that violent criminals have a high tolerance to their own stress levels.

To sum up, a strong start for a child increases the probability of positive outcomes in later life and a weak start increases the likelihood of future difficulties. When compared to the cost of a child who has to be taken into care, or the cost to families and society of a child with behavioural problems caused by a lack of early years love and attention, early intervention is not only kinder but much more affordable. Instead of condemning young people who are emotionally unstable and engage in antisocial behaviour, we need to address and recognise the importance of early years education, and ensure that future generations are given the necessary love and care to allow them to grow up into stable adults capable of reaching their full potential.