Sure Start - Early excellence centres (original) (raw)

The early excellence centres programme was set up in 1997 to develop models of good practice in integrating services for young children and families. Early excellence centres offer high quality practice in one-stop-shop integrated education and day care for young children, and services and opportunities for parents, carers, families and the wider community both directly and in cooperation with other providers.

Early Excellence Centres along with other settings - like neighbourhood nurseries, maintained nursery schools, primary schools, family centres, voluntary and private sector provision – are now forming the basis of Sure Start Children's Centre developments.

Operational principles for early excellence centres

Early excellence centres are expected to demonstrate underpinning high quality practice across a broad range of education and care services for children and families. Building on that existing good provision early excellenc centres are expected to deliver, or have well advanced and convincing plans to develop, the following core activities:

• the provision of good quality integrated early education and daycare for children requiring centre-based extended-day and extended year provision
• parental and carer involvement in the education and care of children e.g. schemes for family learning, developing parenting skills, raising parents’ expectations and in other ways
• support services for parents and carers of children, e.g. home support, drop-in facilities, counselling and information services
• effective early identification and intervention for children in need and children with special educational needs, with a view to improving the children’s prospects and, wherever a appropriate, achieving inclusion in mainstream provision
• access to adult education and training by parents of young children and other adults, including those seeking skills and qualifications for employment
• raising standards of integrated early years provision amongst other early years providers, including voluntary and private providers, childminders and other carers, by contributing to the training and development strategy of the Early Years Development and Childcare Partnership and through the development and dissemination of good practice.

In delivering these activities early excellence centres:

• develop effective multi-agency collaboration between education, social services, health, community services, other agencies and employers in the provision of services
• pay particular attention to the promotion of social inclusion for isolated and disadvantaged families, equal opportunities and race equality in all aspects of the work of the centre
• co-operate with schools and providers of before-and-after school care to promote continuity of educational provision and study support
• monitor and evaluate the effects and effectiveness of the Centre’s work.

Details of early excellence centres in different areas can be found in the map of Sure Start setting.