Children ‘develop better at nursery’

Parents may not provide as much varied activity to aid speech and movement, new study claims

Parents who are unable to give up work to look after their children are given welcome news today: a report claims that nursery school is likely to help them develop social and everyday skills. The study by the London School of Economics and Oxford University, found that the children of stay-at-home mothers seem to fare less well, having poorer speech and movement development.

PARENTS who are unable to give up work to look after their children can breathe a sigh of relief, because sending them to nursery is likely to help them develop social and everyday skills, a report claims.

The study by the London School of Economics and Oxford University found that the children of stay-at-home mothers seem to fare less well, having poorer speech and movement.

Dr Laurence Roope, of Oxford’s Health Economics Research Centre, said: “It should give parents some reassurance that nurseries are not going to harm their children, and are likely to be beneficial.

“It seems that what is important is engaging in interactive activities. It could be there is a trade off,” he added. “Going out to work brings in more money for the family, which leads to more financial security and the ability to partake in more activities. But it might mean that the bond between parent and child is not as great, particularly if the parent is tired or stressed.

“Overall, it seems nursery has a significant impact on development,” he said.

The benefits of nursery seemed to increase as children spent more time there, said the report, which was based on a survey of more than 800 mothers by the German Socio-Economic Panel.

It asked about their socio-economic status and their children’s progress at age two and three, using questions such as “Can your child cut pieces of paper with scissors?” and “Can your child speak in two-word sentences?”.

Singing songs and arts and crafts were found to have a positive impact on dexterity, which researchers linked to the actions associated with songs and the hand skills needed for craft work. Reading, storytelling and visiting other families were found to have a positive impact on speech capabilities.

The researchers said children were often exposed to more stimulating activities at nursery, as well as interacting with new children and adults.

Professor Paul Anand, the report’s lead author, said it was “one of the first economic studies to look at behaviour of very young children ... and shows that different activities promote different skills”. He said it pointed to specific activities that parents and carers need to engage in to foster certain skills.

Laura Perrins, co-editor of The Conservative Woman website and an advocate for stay-at-home-mothers, said the report made it seem mothers cannot be trusted with their children.

“No doubt if I dig a little deeper I would find a very select group of children chosen,” she said. “One wonders how so much human progress has been made so far without children being in nursery. Although, I note, little is said about emotional development.”