Sure Start Children’s Centres are at the heart of the Government’s Every Child Matters: Change for Children Programme. One of the Government’s aims is that Children’s Centres will have a central role in improving outcomes for all young children. They will help to reshape, enhance, add value and increase coordination of services to families.

The programme is being funded by the Department for Children, Schools and Families (DCSF) through Sure Start, but local authorities have been given strategic responsibility for their delivery

We are developing 77 Sure Start Children's Centres across Surrey. The Children's Centres will be set up between April 2006 and March 2010.

Each Children's Centre will aim to provide services that are tailored to their communities needs.

These services will vary according to each Children's Centre but may include:

• Integrated early education and childcare - all Children's Centres offering early years provision will have a minimum half-time qualified teacher (increasing to full time within 18 months of the centre opening).
• Support for parents - including advice on parenting, local childcare options and access to specialist services for families.
• Child and family health services - ranging from health screening, health visitor services to breast-feeding support.
• Helping parents into work - with links to the local Jobcentre Plus and training.

Sure Start represents a unique approach to early intervention for children from birth to four years old, their families, and communities. Rather than providing a specific service, the Sure Start initiative represents an effort to change existing services. This is to be achieved by reshaping, enhancing, adding value, and by increasing coordination.