The future of the next generation of Sri Lankans will depend on the education they can access. In Great Britain, the concept of Early Learning as a necessary preparatory step before entering formal school is widely accepted.

In Sri Lanka the need for Early Learning Centres is greater still. Many women in the fishing villages and surrounding districts in which SFFL operates are widowed, often very early in life. For those, and for other women with young children, the chances of obtaining any worthwhile work are near impossible unless they have somewhere to leave their children.  STEP has worked with SFFL to establish a programme for the re-organisation of the SFFL chain of Early Learning Centres with staff trained to the latest standard. STEP has also set up and equipped three Model Centres to act as live examples and as training centres for the proposed expansion of the current network to150 Early Learning Centres.