Crawley Labour MP Peter Lamb welcomes expansion of Healthy Babies support for local families

Local families are set to benefit from expanded support for parents and babies as the Government rolls out its Healthy Babies programme to Crawley. The expansion will mean parents can access more joined-up support through Best Start Family Hubs, bringing together health, early years and family services in one place.

Under the plans, families will be able to access infant feeding support, perinatal mental health services and help to build strong parent-infant relationships, alongside wider health visiting and midwifery support.

The Government says the approach will draw on the principles of the former Sure Start programme by putting integrated services at the heart of support for families. More than 1,000 family hubs across England are expected to provide Healthy Babies support by 2028.

The Healthy Babies programme forms part of the Government’s wider neighbourhood health approach, which aims to deliver more integrated services closer to where people live. Government guidance says Best Start Family Hubs are intended to bring together health, family and early years support and provide earlier, more coordinated help for children and parents. So far family hubs have already been introduced in Bewbush and Broadfield, with further hubs to follow.

Peter Lamb, Labour MP for Crawley, said:

“The first months and years of a child’s life are incredibly important, and parents should be able to get the support they need without having to navigate lots of different services on their own.

“That is why I welcome the expansion of Healthy Babies to Crawley. Bringing services such as infant feeding support, mental health support, health visiting and midwifery together will make it easier for local parents to get help when they need it.”

“The Sure Start approach showed the value of bringing services together around families, and I am pleased that these principles are being put back at the heart of early years support.”

“Every child deserves the best possible start in life, regardless of their background or where they live, and this expansion should mean more families in Crawley can access high-quality support close to home.”