Prevention is better than cure

There are many barriers to putting what seems like common sense - prevention when you can, getting it right first time when help is needed - into common practice. These include short-termism, silo working, risk aversion, lack of evaluation and “dual running” ie a lack of money to invest in early action services at the same time as acute intervention. Leadership and culture also play an important part.

A number of ideas have been put forward to help tackle these barriers, including longer term planning; classifying early versus acute action spending; protecting early action; treating it like capital investment and ring-fencing it from acute spending; and setting targets to shift from acute spending to early action over time; pooled budgets between different agencies to break down silos; social finance and early action loan funds to bring in upfront money to invest; better evaluation of what works and investment in leadership and culture change.

A considerable body of evidence is being created about what works by the Early Intervention Foundation and the Education Endowment Foundation and others. Learn more about examples of good practice.

Within the devolved administrations of the UK, there are examples of innovation that might be adopted elsewhere.

There are strong social, financial and economic arguments for doing much more of prevention and early action.

Many studies point to massive potential savings if there were more investment, for example, in children and young people, in preventative health care, and on reducing crime and re-offending.