Above: Councillor Peter Cannon (left) joined parents following a midwife appointment at Moorlands Family Centre
Families in Milton Keynes can now get an even wider range of support for babies and young children at the City Council's Family Centres. The expansion is part of the Government's ‘Best Start in Life’ programme and aims to make it easier for expectant parents and families with children aged five and under to access advice, help and joined-up services close to home.
Parents will be able to get extra help around child development, school readiness, and specialist services including Special Educational Needs and Disability (SEND), speech and language, and healthcare from new ‘Best Start in Life’ Practitioners. This team will work across all ten Family Centres.
The number of midwife sessions in Family Centres has doubled over the past four years, and from this month, the City Council is introducing extra midwifery appointments and postnatal drop-in sessions to make sure even more residents can access this expert healthcare. NHS midwives monitor the health and wellbeing of both mother and baby, provide advice on pregnancy, birth and newborn care, answer questions, and identify any additional support or healthcare needs.
The City Council is also helping a record number of families access free early education through its Time for Twos scheme. Eligible families can receive up to 15 hours of fully funded early years education per week for their two-year-old at an approved nursery, pre-school or childminder. New Government figures show that 84% of eligible two-year-olds in Milton Keynes are taking up their funded place – much higher (12%) than the national average.
"We want every child in Milton Keynes to have the best possible start in life. By expanding the services available through our Family Centres, we're making it easier for parents to access expert advice, healthcare and early years support in their local community.
It's also fantastic to see so many families taking up funded childcare through our Time for Twos scheme, helping more children develop the skills and confidence they need before starting school.”
Families can find details of their nearest Family Centre at www.milton-keynes.gov.uk/family-centres
Debbie Murray, Manager of Moorlands Family Centre (left), with parents at a new café session aimed at local families with children under five