On 11 May 2012, Professor Frank Oberklaid from the Centre for Community Child Health (CCCH) was pleased to introduce Naomi Eisenstadt, Senior Research Fellow in Education and Social Policy, University of Oxford, former director of the UK Sure Start initiative, and – more recently – the UK Social Exclusion Task Force.

Over 120 early childhood practice and policy professionals heard Naomi deliver a presentation based on her book – “Providing a Sure Start – how government discovered early childhood”. The presentation provided an insight into the importance of policy intent, data systems and political will for innovation, concluding that ‘success is when what seemed innovative is just what we do everyday’.

The keynote presentation was followed by several examples of social inclusion approaches in the Australian context. These included:

• Dr Nadine Cameron from the Brotherhood of St Laurence on the need for inclusion to incorporate staffing and evaluation policies when planning ECEC service hubs.
• Ginie Udy, CEO SDN Children’s Services, outlined their approach to ensure families facing financial constraints could access early learning and care.
• Researchers Dan Clooney and Dr Jane Page discussed the E4kids research project and early findings.

Presentations from the seminar are available here.