Early years support sets a child up for life. It should be a national priority | Alice O’Keeffe

In these precarious times, we need something even more ambitious than Sure Start

My oldest son is turning 10 this week, and he’ll be celebrating with his mates in our local gaming emporium. I, meanwhile, will be allowing myself a misty-eyed look back at a decade of being a parent: the hits, the misses. It seems like a natural time to take stock. What have the last 10 years taught me?

One thing I wish I’d understood more fully at the beginning is the importance – and the fleeting nature – of those tender, challenging early years. Like many modern parents, I embarked on the most important job of my life with 100% enthusiasm but zero knowledge or experience. I’d spent my entire life, in fact, training for something completely different: I knew how to pass exams; I knew how to talk my way into a profession (and out of one); I had been trained from childhood to value academic achievement and professional success. I was completely bemused and befuddled to find myself trapped in my flat, tending to the needs of a small, speechless human.

Related: By axing early years help, we give our children a mountain to climb | Frank Cottrell Boyce

Related: Why the Tories’ so-called free childcare will punish children and families | Neil Leitch

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from Children | The Guardian https://ift.tt/2Utd0lC