Two years ago, we reviewed our education strategy and said we would focus on improving the life chances of kids in the UK. We also said we could only do that by working with partners.
Recent weeks have been challenging for everyone, not least parents and carers who quickly found themselves juggling home schooling and home working. But these unprecedented times have shown how the Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ can make a vital contribution to supporting the education of our nation’s young people. I’m really proud of the work our teams have done with Bitesize Daily. In a matter of weeks they developed new online and TV propositions that have kept millions of kids learning throughout lockdown. This is what public service broadcasting is all about.
Many of those at the Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ involved in helping to educate the nation through lockdown were also on the cusp of doing this in quite a different fashion - through Tiny Happy People, one of Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ Education’s biggest ever initiatives - and I’m delighted to say that we’re now officially launching the programme today.
The idea behind Tiny Happy People is simple: we want to improve the language and literacy development of pre-schoolers in the UK.
Evidence shows that 1 in 4 children in England start primary school without the language and communication skills they need to thrive. In less well-off areas, it goes down to 1 in 3 and is a similar picture across the Nations, and we know that once children start behind, they stay behind.
The Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ has been talking with experts in education for two years and we’re excited by what those conversations have opened up. At its simplest, it’s that literacy and language skills start from before birth, and that we can all make a difference to how well babies and children develop those skills. From today, anyone caring for a baby or toddler can access a wealth of videos and information to give them ideas and confidence, and a little encouragement too, to do just that.
Why the Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ’s getting involved
As Bitesize Daily has shown, the Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ, with its reach and expertise, can have a real impact on how our kids learn. When we partner with experts in education that impact is multiplied. This campaign embodies our mission to inform, educate, and entertain – this time for our very youngest audiences and their parents.
We’ve created lots of written content designed to give parents new knowledge and skills, alongside hundreds of videos that bring it all to life - together we hope they will make a real difference.
An Innovative Partnership
In collaboration with many others, we’ve given ourselves the challenge to halve the number of children in the UK starting school without the language they need to get on.
The research we’ve done suggests that most parents don’t know how crucial their role is in their baby’s language development. Once they know - they can make all the difference.
All the things we’re doing for this campaign are grounded in evidence. And everything is founded in close collaboration with frontline professionals, industry leaders and experts.
I’d like to thank our partners - who’ve worked tirelessly with us these last couple of years to realise this ambition.
I’m delighted that the Duchess of Cambridge and the Royal Foundation have agreed to partner with us on this initiative. Over the last few years Her Royal Highness has been involved in a number of campaigns aimed at children, so we have welcomed her involvement in Tiny Happy People, and we look forward to a long and fruitful partnership in addressing this vital issue.
World leading experts from The Royal College of Speech and Language Therapists, The Institute of Health Visiting, The Royal College of Midwives, I CAN, and speech and language academics at The University of Liverpool, University of Sheffield, and LuCiD have kept us on the scientific straight and narrow. Whilst Public Health England, The National Literacy Trust, The Education Endowment Foundation, The National Lottery Community Fund and KPMG have played key roles as part of our Advisory Board.
We are also indebted to the Greater Manchester Combined Authority for helping us pilot the approach with new mums and dads bringing up their children in the same neighbourhood as Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ Education’s home base in Salford.
And a new model of delivery
Public service broadcasting is more important in the 21st century than it’s ever been – of course it’s about quality, national moments and bringing the best to everyone – but it’s also about social purpose and reaching the audience wherever they are.
There are 450 pieces of video and written content on the new Tiny Happy People website, ranging from word games to play with your toddlers, to ideas for first time dads. You’ll find us on social media too of course, as many did in lockdown – the Tiny Happy People Instagram already has over 20,000 followers showing there’s a real appetite for this type of content and support.
It’s a UK wide campaign available to everybody, everywhere from day one but our longer-term plans are also to do more in specific communities to spread the word, and to offer a space to share ideas and build confidence in a friendly, COVID-safe setting.
We’re working with community partners in Manchester, then Belfast, Glasgow, Merthyr Tydfill and Cornwall to find ways to work directly with new parents in a virtual setting initially, but back in community spaces when this is safe for all involved. And we’re building connections with health care professionals across the country to roll out these plans further when it’s safe to do so.
We couldn’t be launching Tiny Happy People at a more important time.
Just as we can start to see a return to school for most children this autumn, we’re delighted to be providing this new bank of resources for those supporting the development of younger children.
The language gap is real, and evidence shows that educational discrepancies are likely to be widened by the COVID crisis. So it’s vital for us to be taking a step to help parents and carers address this right now.
I hope that many of you find inspiration, ideas and support from it in the same way so many of you found this from Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ Education during lockdown.