Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how early years services and support for babies will be incorporated into the Government's community-based model of care and neighbourhood health service proposals.

Best Start Family Hubs and Healthy Babies will be a core component of Neighbourhood Health for babies, children and their families.

The programme will bring early years, health and family support together through a network of up to 1,000 hubs and 2,000 network sites in every local authority in England by the end of 2028. Healthy Babies services, including maternity, health visiting, infant feeding, perinatal mental health and parent-infant relationship support, will sit at the heart of this offer.

Local authorities and health partners will develop joined-up pathways from pregnancy onwards and explore opportunities to co-locate services in Best Start Family Hubs, Neighbourhood Health Centres, GP settings and trusted community venues. This will help families access early years support, parenting and home learning services, and early support for children with additional needs, closer to home and through a more preventative, joined-up model.