EAN: 9783954890224

SOCIAL INCLUSION AND INTEGRATED SERVICE DELIVER...

It is widely acknowledged that family factors have a decisive impact on children s
opportunities in life. Following its landslide victory in 1997  New Labour initiated Sure Start
a cross-departmental programme intended to combat child poverty and social inequality by
providing comprehensive family-centred services to children in pre-school age and their
families. First evidence  however  points to significant difficulties in reaching minority
ethnic families. This paper seeks to explore conditions for engaging effectively with minority
ethnic families in Sure Start Children s Centres. Effective engagement is defined as provision
which is accessible to as well as inclusive of users and has positive outcomes measured against
policy  practitioner and user objectives. Given the significant diversity of ethnic groups and
limitations of previous research  existing evidence on ethnicity and Early Years provision is
complemented by findings of a case study on the experience of Somali parents in a South London
Community. It will be argued that Children s Centres potential for effective engagement can be
enhanced through a) considering individual ethno-specific factors as well as regulatory and
physical contexts in service design  b) well-trained staff and adequate resourcing  and c)
actively involving parents in service planning  delivery and evaluation. It will also be
suggested that the ability to offer inclusive services is constrained by systemic tensions
arising from the rapid expansion of service provision and the underlying target and performance
management model.

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