Early childhood development

Understand this issue

Sure Start achieved its aims, then we threw it away

comment

"We know that poor children grow up with poor life chances. We know how to ameliorate that. The choice is ours." Paul Johnson writes for the Times.

15 April 2024

A mess has been made of Child Benefit, and the clear-up operation may not be easy

comment

"Status quos can be hard to change, no matter how incoherent they are." Robert Joyce writes about child benefit in The Telegraph.

29 March 2024

Retirement is not always a choice that workers can afford to make

comment

"More of us may feel little choice but to work a year or two longer than planned." Paul Johnson writes for The Times.

6 November 2023

Policy analysis

The short- and medium-term impacts of Sure Start on educational outcomes

report

We study the medium-run effect of Sure Start on academic outcomes, finding large benefits, particularly for children from disadvantaged backgrounds.

9 April 2024

Sure Start greatly improved disadvantaged children’s GCSE results

press release

New research from IFS finds that Sure Start generated big improvements in the educational performance of children from low-income backgrounds.

9 April 2024

What you need to know about the new childcare entitlements

comment

This comment looks at who will be eligible for free childcare, whether funding is high enough and what impact the new entitlements might have.

28 March 2024

Academic research

Parental beliefs, perceived health risks, and time investment in children

working paper

What role did beliefs about risks and returns play for the allocation of time investment in children during the pandemic?

15 April 2024

The consequences of miscarriage on parental investments

working paper

We exploit the random nature of single, early miscarriages to examine the impact of pregnancy loss on parental investment and family outcomes.

22 March 2024

The menopause "penalty"

working paper

We estimate the effect of menopause diagnosis on employment and earnings, reliance on social safety net programs, and demand for medical care.

18 March 2024