The support currently on offer at children’s centres in Plymouth is set to grow with the launch of the city’s first Family Hubs next week.
Children’s centres currently support families with children aged 0 to 5, whereas Family Hubs will bring more services together and expand this offer to support those with children aged 0 to 19 years, or up to 25 years old for young people with special educational needs or disabilities (SEND).
Plymouth City Council has been awarded a share of £300 million that the Government has set aside for 75 local authorities to support the development of Family Hubs and establish Start for Life support that will help families as their children grow.
The Start for Life offer, supporting pregnancy through to four years old, is the first stage of the Family Hub programme to go live. Over time, the Family Hubs will incorporate additional support such as youth services to help families with older children and teenagers right into early adulthood. This will mean that whatever help, guidance and advice that families need, they will be welcomed at their local Family Hub where they can find support and connect to a wider network of services.
Next week, four of the city’s children’s centres will celebrate the start of their transformation:
- The Barn, Barne Barton Family Hub
- Rees Wellbeing and Family Hub, Plympton
- Nomony Family Hub, Cattedown
- Four Greens Wellbeing and Family Hub, Whitleigh
Families are invited to join in the fun at launch events at all four of these locations, from 1pm to 3pm on Tuesday 6 June. There will be a range of activities for babies and children to enjoy including arts and crafts, face painting and bouncy castles as well as free refreshments. Parents and carers will also be able to find out more about the activities and support that’s available to them and their family.
Councillor Jemima Laing, Deputy Leader of Plymouth City Council, said: “We want all children in Plymouth to have the best possible start in life and to ensure that parents and carers feel supported by their communities. The first few years of life are absolutely crucial so it’s fantastic to be launching the new Start for Life offer at four of our new Family Hubs.
“This is just the start of a journey for us in Plymouth, as over time all our children’s centres will transition to Family Hubs and bring together a much broader range of services to support families. Our aim is for any parent or carer to feel welcome at their local Family Hub, a place where they can reach out to a network of support and easily find the help they need in a local place, at any stage in their children’s lives.”
The multi-agency Family Hubs will offer:
- information about local support
- groups and activities for all the family - antenatal classes, play sessions, parenting programmes, dads groups and child development groups such as language development and relationship building
- practical help from professionals and peer supporters
- breast feeding and infant feeding support
- equipment on loan for example, breast pumps
- access to extra help if things get difficult
Find out more about Family Hubs.