§ Mr. JenkinsTo ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what plans he has further to develop Sure Start programmes in Tamworth constituency, with particular reference to rural areas. [173279]
§ Margaret HodgeChildren's centres represent the next stage of the Government's plans to expand high quality integrated service provision for young children. By March 2008 we aim to have children's centres services available to all under-fives and their families living in the 20 per cent. most disadvantaged wards, which include Glascote in Tamworth.
As a first step to achieving this, local authorities have been allocated funding and targets to enable them to reach 65 per cent. of under-fives and their families through children's centres by March 2006. We expect them to build on their existing Sure Start local programmes, Early Excellence Centres and Neighbourhood Nurseries. Additional funding has also been made available to cover the extra costs of providing children's centre services in rural areas. It is the local authority's responsibility to determine how to allocate these resources to best serve the needs of families.