Education gap sparks £1.8m early years overhaul

A £1.8m plan to improve early education in York has been approved, after a report showed gaps in childhood development by the age of five in the city were among the widest in the country.

A meeting to approve the scheme heard there were "persistent inequalities in early childhood outcomes, including health, speech and language development, and school readiness".

City of York Council said inequalities were "evident by the age of two" and widened over time.

Councillor Lucy Steels-Walshaw, said York would tackle the problem by becoming a centre of excellence for early childhood development, which would see the city "lead the way in early years innovation".

A report on early education in York stated current services were "fragmented" and lacked "an overarching strategic framework".

Steels-Walshaw, the council's executive member for health, wellbeing and adult social care, said becoming a centre of excellence would close gaps in health and wellbeing inequalities "that we know exist across our city".

According to the Local Democracy Reporting Service recent analysis of 12,000 children in York over seven years found inequalities could be seen by a child's first birthday and they were significant by the age of two.

The council said the plan, known as Best Start was set to begin in September and would improve the "physical, social, language and emotional development of children by the time they start school".

Bob Webb, the council's executive member for children, young people and education, said: "Evidence consistently demonstrates investment in the early years most effectively improves outcomes for children across their entire lives."

The plan follows the launch of a national Best Start strategy to drive up the quality of early years education .

The council has received about £1.8m from the government to deliver the plan over the next three years.

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