Family Hub programmes replaces Hastings Opportunity Area
East Sussex County Council has been selected as one 75 local authorities across the country that will share in a major new government funding scheme to support vulnerable children and families.
The Family Hubs and Start for Life programme, which will cost a total of £302m nationwide, is being jointly overseen by the Department for Health and Social Care and the Department of Education (DfE). It is aimed “to ensure every child gets the best possible start in life, forming part of government’s commitment to level up outcomes across the country”. The hubs will “give parents advice on how to take care of their child and make sure they are safe and healthy – providing services including parenting and breastfeeding support.”
An additionally funded Supporting Families programme will appoint dedicated keyworkers to the most vulnerable families, offering practical assistance, including hands-on parenting support. The government press release claims that young people who have been supported by the programme are 38% less likely to end up in prison and 32% less likely to end up in care.
For those children who do grow up in care, and often face multiple challenges without the family support network that others take for granted, extra help – including practical advice on housing, finance and employment – will be offered as they leave the care system and transition to independence.
Sally-Ann Hart, MP for Hastings and Rye, has warmly welcomed the new programmes within her constituency.
She issued a statement: “It is absolutely vital that families across the country have access to the same high quality services to support them and their children’s develop-ment no matter where they live, including here in Hastings and Rye.
“I therefore strongly welcome the new Family Hub for East Sussex as part of the Government’s Start for Life investment – this will improve local access to childcare, mental health services, housing advice and employment, for families who need it the most.
Neither she nor anyone in central government or on East Sussex County Council has been willing to comment, however, on the imminent winding up of the Hastings Opportunity Area (HOA) programme which has targeted DfE funding on disadvantaged children through local schools and community groups since 2018. Retiring Hastings Borough Council leader (and former teacher) Kim Forward issued a press statement at the end of last month recording her disappointment at the ending of the HOA. She says she wrote to government minsters “to express our concerns on behalf of all our young people”.
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