Big business for little people
The Royal Foundation Early Years report: the case for investing and the role businesses can play in unlocking benefits
It’s time to change how we prioritise and invest in early childhood
Our report for The Royal Foundation Business Taskforce for Early Childhood shows that investing in early childhood could generate up to £45.5 billion in value for the national economy each year and create a healthier, happier society.
Established by The Princess of Wales in 2023, the Business Taskforce for Early Childhood aims to transform how society and business prioritises and supports children during their early years.
As part of our Five Million Futures societal impact programme, Deloitte is proud to be a founding member of the Taskforce, using our skills and project management support to help shape the direction of the Taskforce.
We have worked on this landmark initiative with other Taskforce members including Aviva, Co-op, Iceland Foods, IKEA UK & Ireland, The LEGO Group, NatWest Group and Unilever UK&I.
The Taskforce published a major new report in May 2024, produced by Deloitte UK. The report makes the case for how investing in early childhood can deliver significant economic benefits and sets out the role businesses can play in unlocking these benefits.
The report shows how ensuring young children have access to positive relationships, experiences and surroundings, impacts not only their own futures, but the health and prosperity of the economy and society.
Investing in early childhood can be a game-changer
Find out how business investment in Early Years could unlock £45.5bn in value for the UK economy every year.
An economic opportunity: Key benefits of prioritising and investing in early childhood
- More support, choice and flexibility for working parents and caregivers of young children.
- A workforce equipped with improved social and emotional skills in early childhood.
- Reduced public expenditure required to address the consequences of adverse childhood experiences.
Five game-changers that businesses can action to have an impact
To help mobilise the business community, the report identifies five interrelated areas of focus that could have a game-changing impact for children under five, the adults around them, the economy and wider society. They are:
- Transform the culture
- Support working parents and caregivers
- Secure the necessities
- Improve early childhood education and care
- Strengthen social and emotional skills
“Investing in early childhood is a down payment on all of our futures.”
HRH The Princess of Wales
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What we are doing as a firm to support the early childhood agenda
- We were recently named on the Sunday Times Best Places to Work for the policies and support we have in place for our colleagues including our parental policies, parental leave, agile working, career breaks, support helplines and more.
- Our Working Families network is a community of over 1,100 working parents and carers. It’s a place for people from the firm to share best practice, ideas, experiences and have access to a range of resources and information.
- The firm is also making a wider impact through our 5 Million Futures programme. For example, we’re committing to work with Teach First to support up to 350 early years professionals to undertake a National Professional Qualifications for Early Years Leaders. We estimate this will have an impact on 36,600 children. In addition, we have donated 1,000 laptops to organisations supporting early years.
- As a founding member of the Business Taskforce for Early Childhood, the firm will continue to play a supportive role in driving the early childhood agenda and galvanising business action.
“A massive thank you for the donation of laptops! It will help us work more efficiently and effectively to help families in poverty in Leeds."
Ellie Brown, Charity Manager, Leeds Baby Bank
The launch of the report took place at Deloitte’s offices, with 28 royal correspondents and was featured in over 200 articles across national and regional print and broadcast news. The BBC, The Times, Sky News and The Evening Standard were among outlets that quoted Deloitte consulting director, Emma Franklin, on the importance of investing in social and emotional skills for the under-fives. Articles also highlighted new initiatives announced by Taskforce members, including Deloitte, focusing its ongoing investment in Teach First to include the early years sector for the first time. Our video of the report received over 49K+ views on LinkedIn in the first week of launch.
Tune-in to The Green Room podcast
Business Taskforce members, Christian Pau, general manager, LEGO Group UK & Ireland, and Emma Franklin, director, Consulting, Deloitte UK, discuss the Early Years report and answer the big question 'Does how we play as children, affect our career?’ on The Green Room podcast.
Early childhood is vital to the health of our economy and society, now and for generations to come. To know how businesses, big and small, can make a difference by investing in early years download the Royal Foundation report and visit the Business Taskforce for Early Childhood website for more information.
“At Deloitte, we know how important it is for businesses to invest in early childhood, whether that’s through driving cultural change by making it easier for our working parents, through our societal impact work or through critical research like this report. We are very proud to be a part of creating this seminal study which can help shape the way we prioritise early years, helping to create a better society for all."
Jackie Henry, Managing Partner, People & Purpose
