MEMORANDUM SUBMITTED BY JANE LANE

The following comments are made from a perspective of racial equality. I make them as a result of my long experience of working on racial equality in the early years field. (*see below for details).

I strongly endorse the response made by the Black Voices Network.

I have written a longish introduction because I wanted to set the context, as I see it, first.

A. Summary

These comments draw attention to the implications of the specific Inquiry points and the importance of children's centres in

· recognising and taking account of their statutory duties under the Race Relations Act (RRA)

· implementing racial equality for all staff, children, their families

· taking specific action with children to promote the learning of positive attitudes and behaviour to differences between people and the unlearning of any negative ones

· recognising the need to really understand what racism is (including institutional racism), in order to be able to fulfil their duties

· accessing or intiating effective training for all workers to unpack the myths about racism and its implication for their work

· considering ways of providing serious opportunities for workers to talk openly and honestly about racism in the context of wanting the best for every child - and the implications of that for every worker.

It suggests that government should consider how an understanding of the reality of racism might best be facilitated across the early years field.

B. Introduction

1. The majority of the issues that the Committee is investigating about Sure Start children's centres have implications for racial equality. Equality, including racial equality, is a fundamental and integral part of the work of all children's centres. There cannot be good quality provision without it.

Statutory duties on racial equality

2. Children's centres have a particularly important and significant role in the field of early years provision, with regard to ensuring racial equality, in that, compared with voluntary, independent and private (VIP) sector provison, they have a statutory duty to comply with the requirements of the Race Relations (Amendment) Act 2000. This duty requires them to eliminate unlawful racial discrimination and promote equality of opportunity and good relations between persons of different racial groups. While all early years settings (in all sectors) must not discrimnate unlawfully on racial grounds, this specific duty has particular implications for the policies, procedures and practices of children's centres.

Role of children's centres to ensure racial equality

3. Complying with the Race Relations Act is but one aspect, although a critically important one, of ensuring race equality in children's centres. Wherever children's centres are sited and however they are organised, the quality and effectiveness of what they offer and what they do in all aspects of their work determines whether they are putting racial equality into practice. It determines whether :

· black and other minority ethnic children and their familes are accessing and benefitting equally from what the centre offers

· members of black and other minority ethnic communities are treated equally in recruitment and employment (including promotion, access to training, career advice and other benefits)

· all children learn positive attitudes and behaviour to those whose cultures, ethnicities, skin colours, appearances, languages or religions/beliefs are different from theirs.

4. There is substantial research evidence over 50 years showing that children notice skin colour differences by the age of 3 and, unless specific countervailing action is taken, white children are likely to place negative values on skin colours different from their own (references to the research listed in Lane 2008). They are learning to be racially prejudiced. In similar ways, some black and other minority ethnic children may learn to see their own skin colours as less valued, less worthy than those of white people (see evidence cited in the response to this Inquiry from the Black Voices Network).

5. Hierarchies of skin colour differences, white generally being regarded as superior and more desirable, are a worldwide phenomenon. A critical task for children's centres, in order to put racial equality into practice, is therefore to counter this negative learning process with young children and their attitudes to skin colour and other ethnic/cultural differences - unlearning as referred to in the EYFS.

The cause of racial inequality : racism

6. Racism is the underlying cause of the racial inequality in our society. In order to address the points identified in paragraph 3 above, it is therefore essential to understand the direct relationship between racism and racial inequality. Some aspects of what is necessary to be done are covered in the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS).

But, like many other people, many workers in children's centres neither understand nor accept that racism, the cause of racial inequality in the first place, is deeply entrenched in our society. Although it is not surprising, given Britain's history, this lack of understanding has implications for their work. They are more likely to see racism as external to their lives - overt violence, harassment, abuse and racist organisations/marches - none of which they support or take part in. They know that racism, in principle, is unacceptable in their work situations. But they are largely unaware of the more subtle and damaging aspects that might exist in their centres - assumptions, sterotypes, judgements and (as the Stephen Lawrence Report states in its definition of institutional racism), 'unwitting prejudice' and 'thoughtlessness'. Importantly, they are seldom aware of what institutional racism itself means. They do not make the link between it and its implications in their work situations.

7. This is not in any way about blame. It is one of the inevitable legacies of Britain's history - many facets of racism remain unknown and often misunderstood or denied. A detailed discussion of what racism is, and is not, in the early years field is given in Lane (chapter 2, 2008)

Consequently, it is understandable, if regretable, that some workers (leaders, managers and practitioners) may see the statutory duties of the Race Relations Act, among a range of many other requirements with which they must comply, as being an unnecessary burden. But complying with these duties, while initially perhaps being perceived as burdensome, is an essential part of the basis of good childcare/education practice. There cannot be good quality without equality being put into practice. Once the principles of what is required are established they can be seen as a fundamental part of what is done to ensure every child, every family, every member or potential member of staff or volunteer is treated equally. As such they can then be seen as no more burdensome that any other aspect of the centre's practices.

8. There is, however, a real difficulty for many workers in understanding what racial equality means in practice. They can see why it is important to incorporate certain practice into their work - including, for example, dealing with racist incidents, having resources that accurately reflect our society, appointing staff from black and other minority ethnic communities - but they may not deal with these issues constructively or appropriately because of their lack of understanding of how they are manifestations of the wider aspects of racism in the first place. They do not see the connection between the racism in our society and what is happening in their centre.

In similar ways to their viewing of compliance with the statutory duty under the Race Relations Act as burdensome, and for the same reason - the lack of understanding of what racism is - they may see specifically creating an antiracist approach to their work as meaning that somehow they are not already caring deeply for every child. Understandably, their defence mechanisms about their present practice may come into play.

It is, therefore, a vital task for workers in children's centres to understand racism in order to be in a position to get rid of it and its damaging consequencse for all children and their families.

Getting rid of racism in children's centres

9. Getting rid of racism is much more than addressing examples such as those cited above, paragraph 8, important as that is.

In order to get rid of racism it is essential to first understand what it is, what its origins are and how it manifests itself in present day society, particularly institutionally. (In this sense, children's centres are institutions). Only then can workers really know how to deal with its consequences realistically and know why it is an issue of concern for them. With this knowledge and understanding comes a confidence of how to deal with all the facets of racism that the Race Relations Act, the EYFS and OFSTED require to be addressed. It removes the burden of not knowing what to do and being apprehensive about putting racial equality into practice. I wrote my book to try to make these links and facilitate this knowledge and understanding. (It has had excellent reviews from all parts of the early years field [see attached]).[1]

10. The gap between understanding and not understanding what racism is, is manifested across the whole early years field including national and local government, higher and further education instituitions and children's centres. This is epitomised by a report from the DfES, about racial equality and black exclusions from school, distinguishing between those that 'get it' and those that 'don't get it' (Wanless and others, 2006). Significantly those who 'don't get it' view policies (on racial equality) as an 'unfair/pointless/bureaucratic burden'. In this sense the early years field is similar.

11. The reality of racism is seldom seriously discussed in society. Discussing it has a history of making many people, especially white people, feel guilty, apprehensive and fearful of having fingers wagged at them amid accusations of 'being called a racist' - racism awareness courses in the eighties and the present day controversies about the use of 'racist' words are examples of this. Early years workers are no different from most other people - they are likely to avoid any potential confrontations and, so far as possible, leave the topic alone. For a variety of reasons - the influence of the media, their own knowledge that racism is wrong and the myths surrounding it - the subject, for whatever reason, is almost taboo. This means that racism and all its consequences are not addressed in any strategic and serious manner (see Lane 2006 for an analysis of the present situation and the barriers to racial equality at all levels).

Understanding racism - existing training courses and policies are seldom effective?

12. Resulting from legislation and a recognistion that British society is multicultural, various training courses have been run to support workers in implementing racial equality. Although they have not been critically evaluated, their effectiveness in enabling participants to understand racism and hence be more effective in their work situations has not, as yet, been substantiated.

13. It is well known that in-service training courses about racial equality have low attendance rates. Where courses are mandatory, participants (unless very well prepared beforehand) often attend reluctantly, possibly feeling 'got at' and thereby creating barriers to receptivity and making serious consideration of the issues less likely.

Even high level training courses that the government has so rightly initiated - early years professional status, leaders and managers and integrated centre leadership and early childhood studies courses - themselves rarely address racism or institutional racism.

Most courses, if anything, are one-off sessions that may help those who are receptive. But there is little evidence that they facilitate the possibility of understanding racism.

Although there has been a vast improvement in government policy guidelines, seldom do they address racism. Similarly very few books used on training courses define the Race Relations Act accurately or discuss racism. A few early years journals bravely tackle the subject but most avoid it.

14. This gap across all training and government policies reinforces the lack of understanding about racism overall. In children's centres I think the reason for this gap is that they have never had a serious opportunity to talk about issues of racial equality - either in their initial training or in the context of their work. They have never had an opportunity to reflect on it, and its implications for them personally and to talk openly and honestly with one another, within an ethos of trust, no blame and sensitive awareness of individual potential vulnerablity.

15. Everyone comes to work in the early years field with their own attitudes, personal identity and experiences, life history, educational and family background, economic and living circumstances, language, ethnicity and culture. People with such a range of differences cannot be expected to come together to discuss and resolve complex and historically implicated issues of racial equality with equanimity in a short period of time. What is needed is an opportunity, over time, to break down misunderstandings and discuss the varities of experiences that influence lives in Britain today.

16. It is becoming more and more apparent to me and to many others working for racial equality in the early years field that the vast majority of training courses and seminars, given their very limited duration, cannot be expected to provide participants with a key to an understanding of racism. Time to reflect, to consider and to unlearn long held attitudes is the essence to this understanding. This is a salutory conclusion because time is a limited comodity for early years workers and trainers.

17. It is essential to identify the problem before being able to suggest a solution. If, as I (and others) believe, understanding racism is the key to implementing racial equality, then one solution must be in more effective opportunities to talk about it. There are a few courses that give participants opportunities to re-evaluate their perceptions. One is More is Caught Than Taught - an innovative programme, over a period of time, that provides such opportunities in a safe and sensitive context to explore what wanting the best for every child means for each person working with young children. Inevitably the constraints are time and cost. But over the ten years of running such courses, the course evaluations have exceeded all expectations in enabling participants to better understand institutional discrimination generally, including the critical importance of an antiracist approach to their work.

18. The barrier to recognition and acceptance of the reality of racism across the childcare/education field (in training and provision) has significant implications for children's centre work. A vital task in order to put racial equality into practice, a statutory duty, in all children's centres is therefore to address this barrier. The reality of racism has first to be understood in order to remove the feelings of discomfort, anxiety, guilt and apprehension - feelings that are so readily apparent in children's centres.

C. Issues briefly identified in order for children's centres to comply with their 3 statutory duties under the Race Relations Act

19. Eliminating unlawful racial discrimination

· identify and remove any racial discrimination

· monitor by ethnicity all recruitment, employment and promotion practices and access to any other benefits

· evaluate the data and take action with regard to any apparent discrepancies

· observe and record children with regard to their access to the available learning resources and activities.

20. Promoting equality of opportunity

· deal with all forms of prejudice constructively and sensitively

· address racial hierarchies of skin colour, language, culture, ethnicity

· use the National Strategies/DCSF publication focusing on Black children to implement racial equality

· provide resources and reading material for workers to instigate discussion on racial equality

· involve family members and members of the local community in discussions about racial equality practice

21. Promoting good relations between persons of different racial groups

· plan strategies to talk and discuss differenceswith children in positive ways, including in mainly white and rural areas

· develop ways to work with children on learning positive attitudes and behaviour to differences between people and unlearn any negative ones that they may have already learnt - for example, by using Persona Dolls

· work with all children to break down concepts of tracil prejudice

· wherever possible, engage with families and local community members/groups, monitoring groups to break down barriers caused by prejudice and to support those subjected to prejudice and discrimination.

D. Questions posed by the Select Committee

Do children's centres promote early childhood development?

22. Such development is limited when racial prejudice and discrimination are present. To ensure opportunities to the best developmental circumstances, prejudice and discrimination must be removed so all children and their familires can benefit. Racist attitudes are damaging both to those subjected to them and those holding them.

Are children's centres an effective response to deprivation?

23. Those families who are 'deprived' can only benefit from what the centre has to offer if they are identified and are able to participate. Ethnic monitoring of communities and links with local authority data are essential for this to be possible.

Is the 'policy' being delivered?

24. One measure of whether racial equality is being delivered/practiced results from ethnic monitoring. This must be stringently excecuted. With regard to the workforce, the hugely improved Children's Workforce Development Council (CWDC) audit tool is not yet mandatory to complete. It is essential that the CWDC devise mechanisms to ensure effective data collection in order to identify any racial discrepancies and discrimination. Only by having such data can local authorities comply with their statutory duties under RRA.

 

The range and effectiveness of services

25. As with para 24, only by comprehensive ethnic monitoring and analysis can services be assessed for their effectiveness in removing and countering racial prejudice and discrimination and identifying any racial disadvantages.

Funding, sustainability and value for money

26. Only by ensuring racial equality can a centre be sustainable. If black and other minority ethnic families and their children are not benefiting equally from the services then it is not possible to describe it as of equal value for everyone in the communities.

Staffing, governance, management and strategic planning

27. As above, comprehensive ethnic monitoring, analysis and evaluation must be implemented. Strategies to put racial equality into practice should be devised - strategies that include programmes to involve workers in talking about racism and its implications for their work.

Whether services are being accessed by those most in need and how effective they are for the most vulnerable

28. As discussed above, the issue of access can only be assessed by comprehensive ethnic monitoring, in association with the local authority's data bank. Taking sensitive account of people's cultures as to their understanding and acceptance or apprehension about attending a centre is important. Experiences of racism may deter attendance.

E. Conculusion

The task facing centres in implementing racial equality must be taken seriously. Government must support them by addressing issues of racism more effectively than at present by, for example, initiating effective training courses on an understanding of racism. While children's centres alone cannot get rid of the racism in our society they can give children and their families a chance to grow up not racially prejudiced.

F. References

Black Voices Networks (2009) Response to the Select Committee Inquiry into Children's Centres. Early Childhood Unit, National Children's Bureau

DCSF (2009) Building Futures : Believing in children - a focus on provision for Black children in the EYFS. The National Strategies.

Lane, J (2006) Right From the Start: A commissioned study of antiracism, learning and the early years. Focus Institute on Rights and Social Transformation (FIRST). www.focus-first.co.uk

 

Lane, J (2006) Some suggested information/resources that may be helpful in working for racial equality in the early years. See www.childrenwebmag.com/articles/child-care-articles/racial-equality-information-for-early-years-workers

Lane, J. (2008) Young children and racial justice :taking action for racial equality in the early years - understanding the past, thinking about the present, planning for the future. National Children's Bureau

Wanless, P, Dehal, I and Eyre, R (2006) Getting it. Getting it right: Exclusion of Black Pupils - Priority Review. DfES. Formally published by DfES in March 2007

* details of my work :

· as a volunteer in my local community

· as an education officer at the Commission for Racial Equality

· as the coordinator of a national organisation (Early Years Equality)

· as the author of Young children and racial justice published by the National Chidren's Bureau in 2008 and contributor to government policy, guidelines, advisory groups and curriculum material, especially with regard to the Race Relations Act and anti racist practice, and

· as an adviser/trainer in early years (local authorities, settings, children's centres), a writer and as a speaker at conferences, seminars etc

October 2009



[1] Not published on Committee website.