It is widely accepted that early education is of major importance to an individual in the long term, especially for those most disadvantaged. However, the process of educating a child is not limited to primary school, being also highly influenced by a home learning environment and quality pre-schooling. The UK Government is trying to raise awareness and taking action towards providing better quality early education years with programmes such as SureStart or Supporting Families in Foundation Years. Basically, these programmes provide around 15 hours of pre-schooling to children up to 5 years old, while channelling more attention and hours to most disadvantaged families.
When dealing with children this age, teachers and carers need to work cooperatively, having access to the same information regarding said children, their families, and known issues that would influence the way they deal with these children. This is where software is of foremost importance: an application with a friendly interface while providing real time information to every user involved with the same child saves time and money, while helping care services in becoming more effective.
In families with social problems such as mental health issues, poor parenting, social isolation, drug and alcohol abuse, among others, there is a special educational need in the household, usually provided by a local social carer. By having access to the feedback left by the child’s teacher in the software database, the social carer knows what to expect from a visit to the child’s home, deal better with any potential issue, and leave additional notes to other carers involved with the child.
In a sector desperately in need of change, children’s education can be highly improved with software solutions like Indigo. Indigo provides an integrated management application that is very easy to use, both in the case setting and on the move, and truly supports the care team, rather than hinder it. By improving the effectiveness of children social care, Indigo enables a more efficient delivery of early education and social care, with resulting economic, social, and emotional benefits, both to individuals, their families, and society as a whole.
– Nuno