Sure Start children’s centres were found to have provided £2 of savings for every £1 in costs, according to a study by the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS). This has led to calls for the government to consider such services as potentially being able to pay for themselves. The centres, which were initiated by the previous Labour government, managed to generate £2.8bn in savings and revenues at their peak in England, as revealed by the IFS report. Sarah Cattan, a research fellow at the IFS and one of the report’s authors, stated that “Our work shows that integrated early years services, if done well, end up costing less than they initially appear once we take into account their benefits.”
The IFS further estimated that for every £1 spent upfront on Sure Start, £2.05 in total benefits were generated over the long term, after considering the benefits for both the government and individuals. The positive impacts of Sure Start were found to be extensive and long-lasting, leading to improved health, education, and social care outcomes for families with children up to the age of five who participated in the program. Sure Start, which initially established “one-stop shops” in disadvantaged areas starting from 1999, offered early years, health, and family support services under one roof. Despite being considered one of New Labour’s most successful social policies, the program was dismantled by Conservative-led governments post-2010.
Nick Ridpath, a research economist at the IFS and another author of the report, mentioned that the benefits of Sure Start, such as improved health and educational outcomes, including better-than-expected GCSE results and reduced school absences, not only hold intrinsic value but also result in savings for the public purse and increased lifetime earnings. While Sure Start did not entirely pay for itself from the government’s perspective, taking into account benefits for lifetime earnings revealed that it would eventually generate approximately twice as much value as its cost. The program’s running costs at its peak were around £2.7bn annually in 2023–24 prices, with the government benefiting from savings in lower health, special needs, and social care expenses, as well as additional income tax and national insurance revenue.
Neil Leitch, the chief executive of the Early Years Alliance, emphasized the positive impact of integrated early support services on children and society in the long term. Investing in quality integrated early years services was highlighted as not only a morally right decision but also a smart economic choice. The researchers cautioned that while Sure Start was beneficial, it was not a “silver bullet” and could not address all challenges faced by children and young people. It was noted that the program did not significantly impact the number of children in council care or reduce support for more severe special needs provision.
