The Department for Education has announced a £20 million support package to help low-income and vulnerable families in England by improving access to early education, health and care services.
The £20 million package will include £10 million for the Family Hubs “Transformation Fund”, which will support local authorities to open family hubs in approximately 10 new areas of England, and
£10 million to expand the “Growing Up Well” digital project, designed to level up outcomes for vulnerable and disadvantaged families.
The Family Hubs programme offers families, children and young people somewhere to access a range of support services, which can include early education and childcare, mental health support, meetings with health visitors or attending parenting classes, counselling or advice for victims of domestic abuse.
The hubs are a combined delivery of in-person and online services that help families, children and young people access the help they need, regardless of where in the country they live. They bring services together into one place, preventing parents and carers from having to search for different types of support that might otherwise be too hard to find, especially for those on lower incomes, helping build connections between families, professionals and voluntary services.
Children and Families Minister Vicky Ford said:
“It is absolutely vital that all families across England have access to the same high quality services in their local communities, no matter where they live. Services like these which offer early help and intervention can make a huge difference for parents and carers, levelling up opportunities for every child to fulfil their potential.”
“That is why we are championing Family Hubs, and this additional £20 million investment will drive forward this programme, helping to grow and expand hubs across the country so that even more parents and children can access the early health and education services we know can have a lifelong positive impact.”
