Marion Macleod: senior policy and parliamentary officer, Children in Scotland
Marion Macleod makes the case that investing in the
workforce and changing our whole system so it works better for
children and families should be at the heart of our parenting
approach.
Parenting, and how to improve it, is the subject of current
attention. Sadly, much of this interest has arisen from
well-publicised 'failures' in parenting, resulting in the abuse and
neglect of individual children as well as in systemic social
problems, such as the riots and looting that spread across England
last year. If we look beyond the sound bites and headlines,
however, we can begin to understand the real problem. Many of the
parents who 'failed' did not have the information and support that
would have helped them give their children the right ingredients
for an optimistic future. The difference is not usually between
parents who are competent and concerned, and those who are feckless
and malevolent, but between those who have known the right things
to do to give their child a good start in life and those who have
not.
So how do parents know the 'right things to do'? Most parents
recall their own upbringing and replicate, adapt, or, in some
cases, react against, it. Some seek out information, through 'how
to' guides, television programmes, websites, and research. Many
consult with family and friends or involve themselves in peer
support groups. Few would 'instinctively' parent well without any
of the foregoing. Parents who cannot or do not access these sources
of knowledge are, therefore, less likely to be able to ensure best
outcomes for their children.
The effects of change
Changes in Scottish society since the latter part of the 20th
century have significantly affected family life. People are more
mobile, thus less likely to be in regular and frequent contact with
immediate and extended family. Fewer people have roots and
sustained connections with the communities in which they live. Most
mothers are in employment. The traditional supports and sources of
information that helped many parents bring up their children have
been eroded. At the same time, the demands and expectations on them
have increased. What has also changed in recent years has been an
increasing recognition of concepts such as inclusion, equality and
opportunity, coupled with a general acceptance that they are both
an appropriate locus of government policy and duty of public
service providers. Helping parents to give their children the best
start in life is now a commitment across the political spectrum.
What is less evident is a clear understanding of, and commitment
to, doing what is likely to achieve best results while using
resources most effectively. This has led to a proliferation of
projects, programmes and approaches, many of which have been
embraced without unambiguous evidence of sustained positive impact
on child wellbeing.
Learning from abroad
A constructive alternative would be to consider what can be
learned from countries which achieve better outcomes for their
children, socially, educationally and emotionally. Children in
Scotland recently led a large European research project,
Working for Inclusion (Children in Scotland 2011). It
looked at early childhood care and education services across ten
European countries, comparing how parents were supported and child
wellbeing promoted. The findings unequivocally concluded that the
countries where services were provided to all children and
families, on a universal basis, achieved significantly better
outcomes for their children than those which provided a 'patchwork'
of services or took a highly targeted approach to intervention. The
level and nature of staff qualifications and the associated
pedagogical approach were also found to be important in engaging
with parents and achieving the best for children. Integrated
systems of early childhood education and care also attained better
results than countries where they were managed and governed
separately. The 'better results' are, furthermore, not marginal or
insubstantial. They are both significant and impressive. Children
do better in school, whole population health is better, there is
lower incidence of crime, mental illness and drug and alcohol
misuse and far less of a gap between the richest and the poorest in
society. We would do well in Scotland to understand how workforce
qualifications and experience, organisational structures and
provision of services on a universal entitlement basis can help
parents better and achieve more for children.
A valued workforce
If we start with the workforce, there are immediately obvious
differences. In countries that do well, staff who work with parents
and children are usually qualified to degree level. In several of
the countries studied, a qualification in social pedagogy had the
most common currency. Even where this was not the case, the content
and underpinning values associated with social pedagogy informed
practice. Thorough understanding of healthy child development, and
how to encourage it; developing trusted and respectful
relationships with parents; and reflecting systematically on
personal practice were found to be key factors in bringing about
good parenting and good outcomes for children. Scotland, in
contrast, includes many of the lowest paid and least qualified
members of its workforce among those who support parents and care
for children; even our degree- level qualifications for work with
children, such as teaching, do not include all the elements
consistent with achieving good outcomes.
Of course, the regularity, consistency, continuity and frequency
of contact inherent in universal provision means that relationships
can be more readily formed and sustained. Thus, knowledgeable and
skilled staff can build up a picture of family functioning, provide
advice, information and support, deliver consistent high-quality
early learning for the child, model 'good parenting' be alert to,
and act on, any developmental concerns and, in a non-stigmatising
and non-threatening way, guide and support parents in doing the
best for their children. Children in Scotland's recent publication
Young Children in Charge looked at the internationally
renowned approach to early learning and child care developed in San
Miniato in Italy (Bloomer and Cohen 2008). Parents are integrally
involved with staff in promoting their child's development, but
also derive significant peer support from other parents. An
intrinsic objective of this pedagogical approach is to optimise the
child's wellbeing, not just to address deficit.
Support in the round
Fragmentation and division of management and organisational
structures would not, on the face of it, seem to be a critical
factor in the extent of effectiveness of day-to-day work with
children and families. Working for Inclusion found
otherwise. Separating aspects of a child's development and
experience - play, learning, health, care - does not encourage an
understanding of the 'whole child'. It also increases the number of
services with which a family will have contact while simultaneously
reducing the capacity of each one of them to gain a full
understanding of the child and family and to form meaningful
relationships with them. Separating what we do with children from
what we do with parents is another unhelpful division. In the
nations in Europe which do well, support for parents is seen as an
integral part of the supportive infrastructure for families, not a
discrete area of activity. In Finland, each child has an agreed
development plan, jointly devised by parents and professionals
(Lindberg 2011). Universal childcare services will certainly allow
more parents to enter the workforce, thus reducing the stress in
families associated with poverty and disadvantage. Organised in the
right way, however, it can tick many more of our aspirational
boxes.
How can we in Scotland learn from the experience of others? How
can we embrace the kind of policies and embed the kind of services
needed to have well-supported parents raising healthy, happy
children? Raising the skill level and knowledge base of our
workforce would be a useful start. Providing degree-level courses
based on the content of the social pedagogue qualification, as well
as offering specific professional development opportunities for
those in the children's workforce holding other qualifications
would also be a positive start. This would enhance the capacity of
our existing services to form positive and constructive
relationships with parents and to offer flexible and personalised
support. Working towards universal entitlement to childcare and
family support services, with ambitious goals and interim targets,
would also be a critically important element. Ensuring clear lines
of accountability for implementation is, of course, a prerequisite
of effective progress.
Changing the system
At the very least we should stop seeing 'parenting', and work
with parents generally, as entities discrete from what we provide
for children. It should be regarded as an integral part of what
every child needs in order for them to do well. Investing in the
workforce so staff are equipped to deliver the most positive
outcomes and changing our whole system so it works better for
children and families should be at the heart of our parenting
approach.