This book investigates whether the 'Every Child Matters' policy framework successfully addressed the systemic social and educational inequalities it aimed to resolve. Authors Catherine Simon and Stephen Ward utilize their expertise in educational policy and social reform to deconstruct the political motivations behind New Labour's agenda. By moving beyond a simple procedural analysis, the text evaluates the ideological underpinnings and the long-term societal implications of these welfare reforms. The authors provide a critical assessment of how these policies shifted the relationship between the state, the family, and the individual child.

Experts in the field of education policy recognize this work as a significant critical analysis of New Labour's social agenda. Readers frequently note that the text provides a necessary academic depth for those seeking to understand the structural changes in British welfare during this period.