The Knowsley Family Hub opened at The Pride Centre, Simonswood Lane in Northwood, Kirkby on Monday 4 September 2023.
At the launch event families had a chance to get a taste of some of the sessions and the support that is available through the Hub, as well as exploring the building and learning more about how they could get involved.
The Family Hub provides services that help give expectant parents and babies a great start to life, supporting parents through parenting classes, learning support, midwifery, health visiting, infant feeding advice and perinatal mental health support. The aim is to make services easier to navigate and more joined-up, ensuring families receive the right service at the right time.
Cllr Margaret Harvey, Cabinet Member for Children’s Services, said “I am delighted that the Knowsley Family Hub in Northwood is up and running. The Hub will ensure that the whole family, from babies to parents, can access the support they need to thrive.
“At the launch event today, it was great to see so many families enjoying the taster sessions and finding out more about the services on offer.
“I am sure that the Knowsley Family Hub will prove to be a fantastic asset for the community, and I would urge families to pop down and find out more.”
Family Hubs bring together a range of support and family services in one central place which are easily accessible by families. A new timetable is on offer at the Pride Centre which will be initially focused on support to families from pregnancy and help to give children the best start in life. This will develop to provide support for children up the age of 19 years, or up to 25 for those with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND).
There is support around parent-infant relationships and perinatal mental health support, improving access to a wide range of integrated support services for families with children aged 0-19 years, breastfeeding support services and parenting programmes for parents of infants.
The Family Hub at The Pride Centre in Kirkby is open Monday to Friday from 9am – 5pm pm for booked activities and drop in support.
Knowsley is one of 75 local authority areas to benefit from a share of the Government’s £301.75m Family Hubs and Start for Life programme funding package for the period 2022–2025.