Families and pregnant women can get help from new £57m fund

75 local authorities across England are being given a share of £126million to support pregnant women and families. The money will be used to provide everything from pregnancy support and infant feeding advice to parenting classes and other support to give their child the best start in life, following a £57million government funding boost.

Start for Life services will include £36.5 million to improve mental health support for families and £18.5 million to improve infant feeding services and.

It comes on top of the £69 million announced in the Budget for a network of family hubs, which act as a one-stop-shop for families to get help with infant feeding advice, parenting classes and perinatal mental health support.

Andrew Gwynne, Minister for Public Health and Prevention, said: "This crucial investment provides a strong foundation to deliver our commitment to raise the healthiest generation of children ever, by giving parents the support they need to ensure their baby has the best start in life.

"The first two years of a child’s life lay the building blocks for their physical and emotional wellbeing into adulthood. That’s why we are investing in early years, as part of our Plan for Change, to improve access to services in deprived areas to ensure no-one is left behind."

Minister for Children and Families, Janet Daby said: "Investment in these crucial services will break down barriers to opportunity, support families and get a record proportion of children ready for school. Through our Plan for Change, we’ll ensure tens of thousands more children are hitting key early learning goals on personal, social and physical development as well as communication, literacy and maths. That’s because children growing up in our country deserve the best start in life – nothing less."

The Family Hubs and Start for Life programme is jointly run by the Department of Health and Social Care and the Department for Education. There are over 400 family hubs in England, covering half of all upper-tier councils.

The Department for Education also funds parenting and Home Learning Environment programmes. These services support parents to form strong bonds with their babies and develop better home environments which boost children’s social, emotional and cognitive development.

Staff at family hubs can connect families to a range of health and education services. This includes helping families access information and advice around debt and welfare, housing, domestic abuse, nutrition, and oral health. They have a universal offer while targeting disadvantaged families or those who would benefit most.

People can get support from a family hub if they are an expectant parent or carer, a parent or carer of a child aged 0 to 19 - or 25 with special educational needs or a disability - or a young person up to the age of 19, or up to 25 with special educational needs or a disability.