Barnardos welcomes the publication of the First 5: A Whole-of-Government Strategy for Babies, Young Children and their Families. This long awaited strategy recognises the importance of a child’s development in their early years and how crucial the role of play, supporting parents and providing timely healthcare and quality early learning care environments are.
Posted on Monday 19 November 2018 in Press Releases, Advocacy
Barnardos welcomes the publication of the First 5: A Whole-of-Government Strategy for Babies, Young Children and their Families. This long awaited strategy recognises the importance of a child’s development in their early years and how crucial the role of play, supporting parents and providing timely healthcare and quality early learning care environments are.
Suzanne Connolly, Barnardos CEO, said “There are many welcome initiatives under this 10 year strategy as it recognises the value of children as children now and not just for the adults they will become. Of particular note, is the intention to have a suite of targeted measures to help tackle child poverty and reduce the systemic barriers that can hold children back such as a tiered model of parenting support, home visiting programmes and meals in early learning and care settings.
Ms Connolly added “Like all new strategies, there is much anticipation and expectation that it will be fully implemented. This strategy re-commits the Government to fulfil key actions in some already published strategies as well as promising to undertake new actions. However, to achieve its wide-ranging ambition and goals significant investment and resources are required along with a full timeline to monitor progress. We look forward to seeing the publication of its Implementation Plan in May 2019.
