More public funding should be focused on children from deprived backgrounds to prevent costly social problems later on, according to a government commissioned review published today.
The report, by Labour MP Graham Allen, says 1% of funds currently spent every year on tackling social problems such as crime, poor health and unemployment should gradually be moved towards ‘early intervention’ programmes for poor children. This should begin from the next Comprehensive Spending Review.Allen also calls for payment by results contracts to be used more widely to help improve outcomes of public investment. He urges CIPFA to work with the Department for Communities and Local Government to develop a method of accounting that ensures ‘future payments based on successful outcomes will be honoured, and that incentives are in place for local areas to utilise outcome-based contracts’.
The report also calls on the Treasury to set up an independent Early Intervention Foundation, funded by the government and new private investors, to promote early intervention programmes and share best practice.
The report, Early intervention: smart investment,massive savings, is the second of two published by Allen, who was asked by the prime minister to look into improving the lives of poor children. The first one, Early interventions: the next steps, was published in January and highlighted how many costly social problems in adulthood could be eliminated by giving parents and children the right support from birth until age 18.
Today’s report looks at how such help can be paid for from existing resources and through attracting new non-government money.
Allen said: ‘There are no “magic bullets” in this report, just a tough, practical guide to changing our spending culture from late intervention to early intervention, which has to be driven inside Whitehall by ministers and officials, and outside Whitehall by an independent Early Intervention Foundation.’
