Next steps in council plans to support families in Calderdale

Calderdale is one of 75 local authorities sharing a £301 million funding pot to provide help for families in an easily accessible way with a single point of access to ensure they do not have to tell their story more than once.

Family Hubs are a Government-designed programme and plans are in place for the council to meet its demands, councillors heard.

It is hoped Calderdale could get around £3 million in funding.

The delivery plans need to show how the borough will deliver the programme’s expectations and how it will improve outcomes for babies, children and families and reduce inequalities in outcomes, experiences and access to services.

A three-year project, the hubs aim to be transformative by changing the way an area does things, integrating services and doing what it can with what it has better than previously.

Key will be early years support, with a focus on ante-natal to age five, emphasising the importance of a child’s start to life, although the hubs will ultimately cover the whole range of childhood.

As well as a physical building-based presence, families should also be able to access help virtually and via an outreach service too, members of Calderdale Council’s Children and Young People’s Services Scrutiny Board heard.

Chair Coun Ashley Evans (Lib Dem, Warley) said the one point of contact is critical.

The council needed to address how it could encourage families to engage with it, he said.