Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to ensure that new Best Start Family Hubs are integrated with primary care services.

Ensuring every child has the best start in life and the chance to achieve and to thrive are the foundation stones of the government’s Opportunity Mission.

Children’s early years are crucial to their development, health and life chances. This government has an ambition to raise the healthiest generation of children ever. Improved health and education go hand in hand, as healthier children are better able to learn and children who achieve well in education go on to live healthier lives. Consequently, the Best Start in Life strategy makes it clear that the integration of strengthened health services within Best Start Family Hubs is critical to achieving these objectives.

Best Start Family Hubs will be a crucial part of shifting from treatment to prevention, and from hospital to community care. The department of Health and Social Care’s 10 Year Health Plan sets out how a new Neighbourhood Health Service will build on and coordinate with Best Start Family Hubs and Start for Life services to continue to integrate children’s services, NHS and public health, including primary care.