Catch them young

Why the first five years of a child's life are vital

The early years of a child's life are the most important - as they develop physically and emotionally.

By the time children start school, at rising five, they already have their own personalities - and they've already acquired patterns of thought and behaviour which can stay with them into their adult life.

That's why the government is putting increasing emphasis on nursery classes and other provisions to get under-fives off to a good start in life.

In a three part series, Catch them Young, Breakfast looks at why the under-fives are getting so much government cash - and whether the new approach is working

Saturday: learning how to be a good parent

As families get smaller and relatives move further away from each other, many of us don't have much experience of small children until our own first baby is born.

It can come as an unpleasant shock to discover just how demanding babies and toddlers can be - at all hours of the day and night.

Baby books are full of advice - but none of the child-care gurus agree on what works and what doesn't.

In our final film on the under-fives, we look at a scheme which matches hard-pressed parents with a trained volunteer, who has been through similar experiences and can offer advice.

If you want to know more about this scheme, click here for the Home Start website

Friday: Ready for school

In today's programme we looked at what happens when children start school - do they have sufficient language skills to help get their formal learning off to a good start?

We heard from Liz Paver, the head teacher from Intake Primary School who gave us her views in a film for Breakfast.

She works to establish 'partnerships' with parents but says it can be difficult when teaching staff already have 100% of their time taken up.

Her school has just under 400 children in 14 classes, and the nursery which operates in the morning and afternoon.

Liz says we expect the children to be practising taking off their outdoor clothes and putting them on and being responsible for hanging them up because they do have outdoor play, indoor play.

It's this sort of independence she is looking for and encouraging parents to develop.

"If they're going to come into school then they have to have some sort of skills that allow them to be independent of home.

"We expect the children to be practising taking off their outdoor clothes and putting them on and being responsible for hanging them up because we do have outdoor play, indoor play."

Her views are echoed by the head of the schools watchdog, Ofsted, David Bell; who wants to see us getting more involved in developing the skills kids need to thrive in class.

You can see both Liz Paver's report and David Bell's interviews by clicking on the link below.

Click here to see both reports

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Thursday: Sure Start Centres

For the first part of our series, Mike Sergeant visited a specialist children's centre that brings together a range of services for children and parents in a one-stop shop.

Instead of having to trek across town for advice from health visitors, or join a playgroup in a draughty church hall, these centres provide help and advice under one roof.

But they're very expensive.

We asked academic Leon Feinstein whether they're really worth it.

Since 1998, the government has been pushing to tackle areas like child poverty, and child care, under the banner of the 'Sure Start' programme.

But does it work?

We'll be asking over the next few days whether enough is being done to support families with under fives. Would you have welcomed more advice - on anything from tantrums to what to feed the kids? Or do you feel we already have too much interference

But we also want to hear from you so please e-mail us with your thoughts from the form at the foot of the page.

Sure Start's Mission Statement TO BRING TOGETHER: Early education Childcare Health and family support Sure Start website

The government now has plans to extend the Sure Start programme creating children's centres with its philosophy founded on the belief that support is better than intervention.

It says the Sure Start programme is "the Government's programme to deliver the best start in life for every child by bringing together: early education, childcare, health and family support."

One-stop shop

The Sure Start Children's Centres include mother and baby activities, adult education and even nutrition and health advice.

These centres are popular with parents because they provide all the resources needed in one place, and provide interaction with other parents.

Although the Sure Start scheme has been in place since 1998, the government is about to embark on a major consultation which begins this Friday.

Proposed expansion

The government is hoping to expand the Children's Centres, it says "By March 2006, Children's Centres are expected to reach at least 650,000 pre-school children in the 20% most disadvantaged wards."

It recognises the need to give young children the best start they possibly can in life - research suggests the earlier the better - certainly by the age of 3.

The scheme applies to England only.

Send us your thoughts on issues affecting under fives - email us now