Introduction Presentations Discussion Conclusions
Developing support to parents through early childhood services
Workshop report
Brussels,
27 November 2009
The workshop was designed to examine how early childhood services are providing parents/carers with educational and social support, and how these services can contribute to more effective parenting. Policymakers, experts and practitioners working in the field presented policy and good practice examples. A second aim of the workshop was to discuss the best way forward and the role of initiatives at the local, national and European level.
Background
The contribution of childcare services has been growing in policy significance in Europe, with increasing attention being given to benefits for children and their parents as well as for society in general. Along with this development there has been a growth in the demand for formal childcare services and a discussion on its social and educational qualities.
Childcare targets were established and agreed during the EU’s Barcelona summit in 2002. The main goal was that
‘Member States should provide childcare by 2010 to at least 90% of children between 3 years old and mandatory school age and to at least 33% of children under 3 years of age’. The European social partners (unions and employers) have supported the objectives of the Barcelona targets and have argued for bridging the gap between the supply and demand for childcare services (Joint letter of the European social partners to the Commission, 2008). According to the social partners, the availability of and responsibility for childcare lies primarily with the public authorities, although the social partners could play a supporting role to ‘develop instruments that help increase the availability of accessible and affordable childcare facilities of good quality’.
However, critical voices have advocated going beyond the Barcelona targets to not only focus on targets for childcare places, but also on the needs and well-being of children. The NGO Eurochild emphasises the importance of recognising children as key stakeholders and as valuable members of society, as well as recognising the value of childhood.
A report from the European Commission (Tackling social and cultural inequalities through early childhood education and care in Europe, 2009) asserts that poverty has the strongest impact on children’s educational failure and that one of the most important elements to ensure high-standard care and education is parental involvement. Conclusions from the Spring EPSCO Council (Key messages from the EPSCO Council to the Spring European Council, 2009) point out that eradicating child poverty can be achieved by strengthening the provision of accessible and affordable quality childcare, amongst other things. This is reiterated in the Joint report on social protection and social inclusion of the European Commission (2009).
Although all European countries provide some form of support to families through services, cash transfers, tax incentives or other benefits, in most countries there is little organised outreach to parents from early childhood centres or services.
Eurofound is particularly interested in examining how early childhood centres provide parents/carers with educational and social support in meeting their responsibilities in bringing up their children, specifically in disadvantaged areas.
Good examples of work with disadvantaged children and parents exist in most European countries. However, the focus on low-income and immigrant groups leads to concerns about reproducing a 19th-century model that considered that certain groups in society needed parenting education while the mainstream population did not. On another level, there is the issue of the training and qualifications of staff in childcare services. If these services are to provide social and educational support, what measures should be taken to ensure staff are appropriately qualified? The question also arises as to what measures can be taken at European level to support the development of educational and social supports to parents while still respecting national differences.
The discussions in the workshop focused on these questions and aimed to elaborate on good practice examples of early childhood services offering educational and social support to parents.
Presentations
In his introduction, Robert Anderson, research manager at Eurofound, outlined the aims of the workshop. Eurofound is involved at European level with issues of quality of life, such as work and family life balance. Good quality childcare services are seen as supporting parents, especially mothers, to enter or re-enter the labour market. They are also seen as an instrument of social inclusion, especially in disadvantaged areas and particularly during the present economic recession. Along with its main partners (employers, governments and trade unions), Eurofound is also concerned with the working conditions, qualifications and pay levels of staff. This workshop was convened to explore how to develop support to parents through early childhood services; there are implications for policies in relation to employment, social protection and equal opportunities. There is a need for concrete examples of policy and practice in this domain across the EU countries, with assessments based on reliable research and evidence.
Olivier Thevenon, OECD Social Policy Division, outlined the current child and family work at the OECD, referring in particular to Doing better for children, a recent OECD publication. The OECD Family Database has 52 indicators on four aspects of family life: the structure of families; the labour market position of families; public policies for families and children; and child outcomes. Data is available on fertility rates; labour market participation; work hours and time for caring; parental leave; public spending on families; child outcomes (health, education, risky behaviour); and costs for parents. There are difficulties in collecting reliable quantitative information at regional level or on out-of-school care and parenting support programmes, as large variations exist in definitions, types of programme, attendance rates, forms of financing and administrative systems both within and across countries. However, it is clear that expenditure on early childhood services differs significantly across OECD countries (see Figure 1).
Figure 1: Expenditure on early childcare services
Source: OECD
Developing support to parents through early childhood services
% GDP 1.6
Childcare spending as a % of GDP Pre-primary spending as a % of GDP
1.4 1.2 1.0 0.8 0.6 0.4 0.2
0.0
Denmark France Iceland
New Zealand Hungary Romania Bulgaria Norway Belgium Finland
Sweden Slovenia
Czech Republic UK Mexico Lithuania Malt
a Italy Latvia
Estonia Australia Luxembourg Portugal
Slovak Republic Spain Netherlands
Canada Korea Switzerland Ireland Poland Austria Jap
an Cyprus US
Germany Greece
Public expenditure on childcare and early educational services includes financial support for families with children participating in formal day-care services (e.g. crèches, day-care centres and family day care for children under age three) and preschool institutions (including kindergartens and day-care centres that usually provide an educational content as well as traditional care for children aged from three to five, inclusive). As demonstrated in Figure 1, Nordic countries have high public spending on early childhood services.
The qualifications of childcare workers differ greatly from country to country and from service to service. Again, Nordic and central European countries are among those with the highest qualifications for certified childcare workers, and where many pedagogues have been trained with a focus on early childhood services rather than primary teaching. These countries also show some of the lowest child-to-staff ratios. Key messages from the OECD are to spend early in the child life cycle on prenatal policies/early childhood and on children at greater risk of poor well-being and to ensure that later investments in children at risk complement earlier investments.
Fanny Voitzwinkler, Council of Europe (CoE) Children’s Rights and Family Policies Unit, outlined the work of CoE and the directives and guidelines on positive parenting issued by various European bodies. In particular, Recommendation Rec 2006 (19) emphasises how governments can support positive parenting (see slide below).
The CoE brings together a committee of experts on social policy for families and children to advise on policies in these fields. It also sponsors a campaign: ‘Raise your hand against smacking’. Twenty CoE states have banned corporal punishment against children. Building a Europe for and with children is a CoE strategy for 2009 to 2011, aiming to promote children’s rights and protect children from violence.
In the discussion, it was noted that childcare enrolment tables can be misleading if they are not accompanied by information on parental leave access and duration. It was also emphasised that directives and recommendations can be abstract and their interpretation will differ widely from country to country; it is better perhaps to invest energies in
providing information on and disseminating good practices in different countries. The contribution of the voluntary bodies should also be acknowledged. Finally, the need to evaluate early childhood programmes was underlined by the participants.
The second part of the workshop was devoted to two practical examples of successful parenting programmes in disadvantaged areas: a presentation of the Pen Green Centre for Children and Families by its founder, Margy Whalley;
and of Biztos Kezdet (a Sure Start programme) in Hungary, presented by Léna Szilvási. Both presentations provided a good overview of the different programmes as well as the different social and national backgrounds that influence the content of the programmes.
Margy Whalley described Pen Green Centre as a place for learning through dialogue with others. The Centre has a strong theoretical background backed up with research and has 27 years of effective implementation. It offers early years education for young children up to five years, with extended hours and extended annual provision to support families.
Particular attention is given to children with special needs and to Travelling people. Adult community education, family support and community health services, and training and support for early years practitioners are also offered. An important dimension is that services are set up with parents and Pen Green staff travel to where parents (including Traveller parents) are. In order to have successful programmes, the system must change – staff must get down from their pedestals, recognise parents as the first and most consistent educators of children and refuse to label ‘other’ parents, diverse groups or individuals. Parental involvement has been a big success, and at this stage 86% of parents are actively involved with the Centre.
Where training is concerned, programmes cannot afford to do more of the same. The roles of professional knowledge and parents’ experience are seen as complementary and equally important. There is a basic understanding that all parents care for their children and are deeply committed if given the opportunity. Pen Green also encourages parents to empower themselves, to assist other parents and to take responsibility for running and managing programmes – for this reason, many men are involved in the services.
Léna Szilvási informed the workshop about Biztos Kezdet (BK), a comprehensive Sure Start programme initiated in Hungary in 2008. In spite of the fact that Hungary has a well-developed preschool system, many children in Developing support to parents through early childhood services
disadvantaged urban districts and isolated villages do not have access to early childhood services. Certain groups in particular, such as Roma families, do not access services, with the result that the school system is unable to compensate for disadvantage in some low-income groups. For this reason, Biztos Kezdet was founded and implemented, particularly in the economically disadvantaged eastern and southern border areas. Although a territorial programme, it is a universal programme offering services to all, focused on children aged zero to three years and their families. Financed by EU social funds, BK centres aim to provide a quality environment that will support the development and learning of disadvantaged children; to support parents; to strengthen communities; and to strengthen inter-agency cooperation across services. Making connections with and preparing parents for employment opportunities is also a key aim. Already, BK offers computer training to parents and organises part-time work. All professionals and staff in BK services receive 360 hours of training and ongoing professional and personal support through the mentors. Among the staff, at least one is professionally trained (nurse or preschool teacher), one has at least a secondary-level education and one is an assistant with local experience (usually parents or grandparents). It is planned to extend the service from the present 35 centres to over 100 by 2012. The innovative BK programme is imbedded in a comprehensive network.
Again, the presentations raised many comments and questions. Although one can only commend the philosophy that all services should work together to provide the best for children, the service raises several questions, such as how Hungary will ensure the continuity of these programmes after the EU funding ceases. Local authorities in Hungary have many other duties imposed by law, which may give rise to tensions between their actual possibilities and central government plans for young children, not least in the present climate of economic depression.
Margy Whalley introduced a note of optimism into this discussion, viewing the lack of or cutbacks in public investment as a challenge to be more inventive and more efficient:
‘We have to become brilliant at collecting for children, reminding the authorities that children’s services are the frontier of the welfare state. We need to aim for progressive universalism, but all the time focusing on the most vulnerable. Change is ever-present and for this reason, adaptation and continued training are necessary. Keep on listening to parents, and involve them in research, organisation and management. Models cannot be copied exactly from one country to another but we can communicate and win agreement on principles.’
The discussion turned to emphasise local authorities and their importance. Good programmes will involve the local authorities, giving them a sense of ownership. Parents and local people must be empowered to persuade local authorities to spend money in a way that makes sense for people.
Discussion – how to make it happen?
The main objective of the panel debate was to discuss what panel members and participants regard as priorities to strengthen social and educational support to parents through early childhood services, the best way forward and how to make it happen through initiatives on the local, national and European level.
Vibeke Bing, founder of the Organisation for the Promotion of Family Centres, Sweden, spoke of the need to provide a welcoming and democratic place for parents to meet. Family centres were founded in Sweden during the economic crisis of the early 1990s. It was a bottom-up movement to help nursing mothers during the first year of a child’s life and to reduce the health access gap in Sweden. Family centres provide maternal and child health and can be combined successfully with the ‘open nursery school’, which, in Sweden, parents can attend with their children whenever they want.
Maria Eracleous, Pedagogical Institute, Ministry of Education, Cyprus, presented a Cypriot programme that supports parents and children to be happy, inspired by the work of Nel Hoddings: Happiness and education. Education and parenting programmes lose their purpose if they do not lead to happiness.
Veronica Nilsson, European Federation of Public Services Unions (EPSU), underlined the many challenges that exist in early childhood education and care in Europe, such as the quality of services, particularly the high ratios of children to professional staff in several European countries; ineffective methods of financing, particularly in services for children aged zero to three years, where parental costs remain high in many countries; the low professional qualifications and wages of staff, especially in childcare services; poor working conditions and career opportunities, along with the impossibility of further training and career advancement in many countries; and the lack of regulation of childcare services – some services do not even pay staff the national minimum wage. These poor working conditions often lead to a rapid turnover of staff, which causes instability in services and cannot be good for young children. The social partners in Europe need to focus on the recruitment, quality training and retention of staff.
Steen Rasmussen, representing local government in Denmark (CEEP section), spoke of the need for good data and statistics to inform policymakers about where Europe stands and to allow comparisons between countries. Europe needs to encourage far more women into the labour market. Denmark spends billions each year on childcare, but the government and local authorities recoup their investment through taxes and an expanded labour force. In 2007, Denmark introduced a Daycare Facilities Act, which imposed an obligation on local authorities to provide each child with a day- care place within three months of demand. Outreach to parents is excellent in the Danish service: parents can meet twice a day with day-care staff who, for the most part, are trained social pedagogues.
Developing support to parents through early childhood services
Jana Hainsworth, Secretary-General of Eurochild, the umbrella group for non-governmental voluntary organisations at European level, spoke of the organisation’s four key priorities, one of which is early childhood education and care. In all its activities, Eurochild uses the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child as its framework. Therefore, the organisation aims for more than just cognitive outcomes from early childhood services, including the well-being of children, resilience, a sense of sharing and democracy. In addition, the economic reasons for investing in high-quality services are well known, as are the costs of not investing. In the economic depression, many more families with young children will suffer if countries do not invest more in social inclusion and services for families.
Conclusions
What can we learn from this expert workshop? Is it possible to develop universal indicators for high-quality early childhood services? And how can Eurofound bring this issue forward in their future work? This final section highlights a few key messages resulting from the workshop.
Investing in high-quality universal early childhood services is the first message. In the current economic climate, care seems to be devalued in society and should be re-established as a priority. An emphasis needs to be put on the development of universal services for children and families, but targeted at populations at risk, such as migrant families, parents and children with disabilities and families living in poverty. Can early childhood centres overcome the effects of poverty or of dysfunctional family environments? Research suggests that much depends on the extent and kind of poverty and on the type of programming provided by services. Ed Zigler, one of the founders of Head Start, famously remarked, ‘One cannot inoculate children in one year against the ravages of a life of deprivation.’ In addition to mainstream early childhood programmes, excluded neighbourhoods and parents need the support of special services, income redistribution, housing, social welfare and job creation programmes (Bennett, 2009, ‘Background note’). Finally, parents should be reached where they are, not where it is more convenient for programmes or those offering services.
According to John Bennett, the rapporteur, reliable forecasts predict sharp rises in child poverty in the coming year, reaching 20% in some countries. Better social models exist in Europe, not least the egalitarian Nordic model, which is characterised by far less child poverty, far fewer social problems and greatly superior early childhood services. Other European countries would do well to examine this model closely, in which many worthwhile jobs are created, staff (generally women) are correctly trained and paid, outreach to parents is practised and children are happy and well prepared for life and school.
Another key message is that working conditions of staff and the image of the profession in early childhood services significantly need to improve. Better pay (payment higher than the national average) should be ensured and high rates of turnover need to decrease. In addition, the image of the profession should be improved and gender balance should be aimed for by creating more career and training opportunities and therefore making it more attractive for males.
The presentations of the early childhood centres Pen Green Centre in the UK and the Biztos Kezdet in Hungary demonstrated that even though they are located in completely different environmental and social backgrounds, the outcome of parental involvement in early childhood services is significant. Both are local centres offering information, counselling and training on parenting. The combination and interaction of professional and parent views on child development creates an enriched understanding of how to act in relation to the child. The key message here for national governments and local authorities is to emphasise more parental involvement in early childhood services, not only by offering the basics of information or a network, but also by offering educational support and by developing a style of working with parents that empowers rather than deskills them.
A final key message is that there is a great need for more and better quantitative and qualitative research about early childhood services offering parenting support. The Living Conditions and Quality of Life Unit within Eurofound has a growing body of research in the area of childcare services. In-depth research has been conducted into out-of-school childcare, with a particular focus on developments in employment and good practice in this sector. Eurofound has identified the development of childcare services and parenting support as an important factor for social inclusion and social protection and therefore intends to continue with research on good practice examples in different parts of the European Union.
Developing support to parents through early childhood services
EF/10/34/EN
