Hull City Council’s cabinet will meet next week with a report calling on it to accept the grant allocation
The Government is launching its ‘Best Start Family Hubs and Healthy Babies’ programme (stock image)(Image: Getty Images)
Hull City Council looks set to accept over £5m from the Government‘s ‘Best Start Family Hubs and Healthy Babies’ programme. A council report recommends the cabinet approves the funding when it meets next week.
The council report calls upon the cabinet to accept the provisional grant allocation of £5,503,700 for 2026-29. The Government has previously committed to rolling out Sure Start-style hubs in every local authority area by April 2026.
The programme seeks to built on the legacy of Sure Start, an initiative introduced under Sir Tony Blair’s New Labour Government in 1998. The flagship early years programme sought improve children’s early development by offering parental advice, health services, and childcare, among other services.
Sir Tony, who called Downing Street ‘home’ between 1997 and 2007, described the scheme as one of his government’s “greatest achievements”. However, following the 2010 general election which saw the Conservative/Liberal Democrat coalition take power, the programme saw its funding cut leading to the closure of many hubs.
Did you know you can make Hull Live a preferred source of Hull news in Google, which will mean you get more of our breaking news, exclusives, and must-read stories straight away? Here’s more information about what this means and how to do it – you can also do it straight away by clicking here.
The report states: “Hull’s Best Start Family Hubs (BSFHs) offer welcoming, inclusive, environments where every family feels valued and confident to ask for support. BSFHs are open to all families with children aged 0–19 (or up to 25 for young people with SEND).”
The Government’s Education Secretary, Bridget Philipson, has previous said: “It’s the driving mission of this Government to break the link between a child’s background and what they go on to achieve – our new Best Start Family Hubs will put the first building blocks of better life chances in place for more children.
“I saw first hand how initiatives like Sure Start helped level the playing field, transforming the lives of children by putting in place family support in the earliest years of life, and as part of our Plan for Change, we’re building on its legacy for the next generation of children.
“Making sure hard-working parents are able to benefit from more early help is a promise made, and promise kept – delivering a lifeline of consistent support across the nation, ensuring health, social care and education work in unison to ensure all children get the best start in life.”
To find all the planning applications, traffic diversions, road layout changes, alcohol licence applications and more, visit the Public Notices Portal.