Giving Children the Best Start in Life

#NottsBestStart

Giving children the best start Nottinghamshire Health and Wellbeing Board 

Giving children the best start in life is a fundamental part of improving health and reducing inequalities. The earliest years of a child’s life have a significant impact on their long-term development and their life chances.

Giving a child the ‘best start’ begins before birth, with good pre-conception and maternity care. Pregnancy and the early years offer a unique opportunity to shape the lives of our children: if a child receives appropriate support during their early years, they have a real chance of maximising their potential.

To assist families in understanding the support and services available from early pregnancy until two years old, we have developed the Nottinghamshire Best Start for Life offer.

How we treat young children shapes their lives, and ultimately, our society.  If we get the early years right, we pave the way for a lifetime of achievement. If we get them wrong, we miss a unique opportunity to shape a child’s future.

 

Nottinghamshire Best Start Strategy "Having a Family Nurse gave me the knowledge and confidence to be the best parent I could possibly be. We grew a bond over the two years I had Dawn as my Family Nurse and she will never know how much she helped me." Charlotte Collison, Mansfield

The first 1001 days - from conception to the age of 2 - are a critical period of development. This is because the earliest experiences, starting in pregnancy, shape a baby’s brain development and have a lifelong impact: during the first two years of life the brain develops a remarkable capacity to absorb information and adapt to its surroundings. From birth to 18 months, connections in the brain are created at a rate of one million per second.

Giving every child the best start in life - a loving, secure and reliable relationship with a parent or carer, supports a child's emotional wellbeing, brain development, language development and ability to learn, and capacity to form and maintain positive relationships with others.

Nottinghamshire launched their partnership Best Start Strategy 2021-2025 [PDF] in February 2021 which will help every child in Nottinghamshire to have the best possible start in life, because we know that a good start shapes lifelong health, wellbeing and prosperity. 

The strategy brings together all key organisations to improve the life chances of all children in Nottinghamshire; working as a multi-agency Best Start Partnership to engage and support families prior to conception, in pregnancy, and across the early years.  

We have developed ten ambitions for Nottinghamshire informed by the evidence base and our engagement with partners.

The ten ambitions for Nottinghamshire are as follows:

  1. Prospective parents are well prepared for parenthood
  2. Mothers and babies have positive pregnancy outcomes
  3. Babies and parents/carers have good early relationships
  4. Parents are engaged and participate in home learning from birth
  5. Parents experiencing emotional, mental health and wellbeing challenges are identified early and supported
  6. Children and parents have good health outcomes
  7. Children and parents are supported with early language, speech and communication
  8. Children are ready for nursery and school and demonstrate a good level of overall development
  9. Children have access to high quality early years provision
  10. Parents are in secure employment

The Strategy builds on successful work already being delivered in Nottinghamshire and will be developing and evaluating activities and services which help to achieve the 10 ambitions.

Find out more

Further information, evidence and local data can be found in the 1001 Days and Early Years and School Readiness joint strategic needs assessment chapters.

You can also email earlychildhoodservices@nottscc.gov.uk

Local Services and Support for Families

National Websites

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