Government to double funding for relationship support and parenting classes
David Cameron has announced government plans to spend £70 million on relationship support and classes for parents over the next five years. The plan forms part of a wider government strategy to tackle poverty, which will also see the replacement of ‘run-down’ housing estates with new developments, and additional funding for the National Citizen Service […]
David Cameron has announced government plans to spend £70 million on relationship support and classes for parents over the next five years.
The plan forms part of a wider government strategy to tackle poverty, which will also see the replacement of ‘run-down’ housing estates with new developments, and additional funding for the National Citizen Service and mental health services.
The relationship and parenting support marks a renewal of the the Troubled Families initiative, originally launched in 2012 with the aim of helping hard to reach families by getting parents into work, combating truancy and tackling anti-social behaviour. The £70 million will be towards relationship support and counselling services provided by a number of local authorities, charities and other organisations, including Relate, Marriage Care and One Plus One.
The Troubled Families programme will also be used to increase the availability of parenting classes and child development services. Ahead of a speech he delivered at the London charity Family Action, Mr Cameron said, “I believe we now need to think about how to make it normal – even aspirational to attend parenting classes…Our Life Chances Strategy will include a plan for significantly expanding parenting provision. It will examine the possible introduction of a voucher scheme for parenting classes and recommend the best way to incentivise parents to take them up.”
