- Tower Hamlets Council one of first 75 local authorities to pilot government Family Hubs model
- Family Hubs provides more connected services for families
- Full network of Family Hubs to be rolled out across the borough by March 2024
Tower Hamlets Council is one of the first 75 local authorities to pilot the government’s Family Hubs model.
Family Hubs, a government initiative, provide a single point of access to a range of different services for families. Residents will experience better connection between services and improved access, with services delivered at times that meet parents’, carers’, children’s, and young people’s needs. Services will be delivered both online and in physical places where families feel most comfortable.
Services are delivered from birth, through to a child’s early years and until they reach the age of 19 (or 25 for young people with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities). Locality partnership groups, consisting of families, local voluntary, community and faith organisations, health sector organisations, schools and nurseries, have helped shape the Family Hubs model in order to best support local families.
The pilot has kick-started in the South West Locality of the borough covering Stepney, Wapping, Whitechapel, Limehouse, and Shadwell. It involves the following Children and Family Centres:
- John Smith Children and Family Centre – E1 2EN
- Ocean Children and Family Centre – E1 0ND
- Ocean Children and Family Centre (Shadwell site) – E1 0AF
- Wapping and Bigland Children and Family Centre – E1 2JP
The council’s new Early Help Strategy, launched in January 2023, will be delivered through the Family Hubs model. During the pilot the council will also look at co-locating services and delivering from partner organisation locations.
Following the pilot’s completion in May 2023, a full Family Hubs network will be rolled out across the borough by March 2024.
Lutfur Rahman, Mayor of Tower Hamlets, said: “Providing excellent services to families is a priority for the council. The new Early Help Strategy, delivered through Family Hubs, will improve residents’ experiences through its emphasis on connectivity between services and partners. I am proud that Tower Hamlets is one of the first local authorities to pilot the Family Hubs scheme.”
Cllr Maium Talukdar, Deputy Mayor of Tower Hamlets and Cabinet Member for Education, Youth and Lifelong Learning, said: “The Family Hubs pilot is a really exciting scheme that will improve accessibility to services for families in the borough. I am grateful to our staff and our partners for continually working to support our families and children.”
Posted on Wednesday 15th February 2023