Families Commission Issues Paper: Investing in the Early Years

The Families Commission has released an issues paper titled 'Investing in the Early Years.' 

The paper reports on the Families Commission’s work on early intervention with families and whānau. It has a specific focused on early-intervention services and programmes that provide care, support and education services for infants and young children (birth to five years), sometimes in tandem with education and support for parents.

The paper focuses on the practice of early intervention and discusses issues relating to providing high-quality services that reach all the families who may benefit from them. While much of the literature is international, information from research underway in New Zealand is also included.

Early-intervention services and programmes - summary of key results:

• Government investment in early intervention is vital
• A mixture of universal provision and targeted and intensive support is most effective
• Government provision across all levels of intensity of early-intervention provision
• Services for the most vulnerable families and whānau
• Evaluations of programs and services need to be more effective

The issues paper is available in full online on the Families Commission website here.

Investing in the Early Years:  Issues Paper 05 / September 2011ISSN 1176-9815 (Online)  –  ISBN 978-0-478-36904-5 (Online)

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