Dame Andrea Leadsom, Minister for Public Health, Start for Life and Primary Care, was welcomed to the John Smith Family Hub in Tower Hamlets on 23 November, to discuss Tower Hamlets Council’s involvement in the Government’s Start for Life Workforce Development pilot.
The Start for Life Workforce Development programme, funded by the Department for Health and Social Care, offers five local authorities a share of £ 10 million over two years to test ideas on how best to support the workforce to give babies the best start in life.
Tower Hamlets is one of the pilot boroughs for the scheme, as well as being one of the first 75 local authorities to roll out the Family Hubs Programme.
Family Hubs are a new way of bringing together all the support a family may need, from pregnancy through to young people turning 19 (or up to 25 with SEND).
Services work together to provide high-quality, whole-family, joined-up support, ensuring that children, young people and families get the right help at the right time.
So far, Tower Hamlets Council has launched two Family Hub networks in the South West and South East of the borough.
Dame Leadsom was welcomed by Cllr Maium Talukdar, Deputy Mayor and Cabinet Member for Education, Youth and Lifelong Learning, council representatives and families who use the Family Hubs.
Lutfur Rahman, Executive Mayor of Tower Hamlets, said:
“It was a pleasure to welcome the Minister to Tower Hamlets to discuss the positive progress of our Family Hubs programme and how it is benefitting families.
“We are delighted to have been selected as one of the five local authorities to pilot the Start for Life Workforce Development pilot and look forward to sharing our learnings.”
Cllr Maium Talukdar, Deputy Mayor and Cabinet Member for Education, Youth and Lifelong Learning, said:
“Family Hubs offer improved accessibility to services for families, and we are grateful that the Minister was able to witness the positive impact they are having on families first-hand.
“We look forward to being part of the Start for Life Workforce Development pilot, and for the benefits that it will provide to the communities that we serve.”
Zainab Arian, Chief Executive Officer of Tower Hamlets GP Care Group, said:
“We are proud to be a lead Family Hubs partner in Tower Hamlets.
“Through the Family Hubs programme, the GP Care Group, which delivers the borough’s 0-19 Service (including health visiting and school nursing), is thrilled to have the opportunity of working together with other local organisations to provide better early start support for children and families in a more connected and flexible way.”
Featured in photo left to right:
Susannah Beasley-Murray - Director Supporting Families
Zainab Arian - Chief Executive Officer at Tower Hamlets GP Care Group
Mohammed Maium Talukdar – Deputy Mayor, London Borough of Tower Hamlets
Andrea Leadsom - Dame Andrea Leadsom DBE MP
Lisa Fraser - Corporate Director of Children and Culture
Mohammed Abdul-Jolil – Head of Early Help & Children and Families Service
