Local MP welcomes investment for Sure Start-style services in Cheshire West and Chester

The Government has invested £163,352 into Cheshire West and Chester Council’s family services.

Samantha Dixon, Member of Parliament for Chester North & Neston, has welcomed new investment into family and community services in Cheshire West and Chester, as part of the Labour Government’s commitment to improving children’s start in life.

Following over a decade of cuts by the Conservative Government, local authorities across the country were forced to make difficult choices. Despite these pressures, Cheshire West and Chester Council prioritised protecting family services, working hard to maintain access to early help and support for parents and children.

The Council have kept every Children's Centre across the borough open at a time where they were being closed across the country. 

This new investment of £163,352 from the Labour Government will provide a welcome boost, helping the Council to build on and enhance the support already in place for families across our area.

The Labour Government has announced grants provided to local authorities to ensure every community has a Best Start Family Hub. 1,000 Best Start Family Hubs are to be rolled out across the country by April 2026 to provide wide-ranging help for families, such as parenting and early development – including £163,352 in Cheshire West and Chester.  

Labour’s Best Start Family Hubs will act as a one stop shop for parents seeking a range of support, including on difficulty breastfeeding, housing issues or children’s early development and language, reassuring families that they have convenient access to support in their local area or can be efficiently connected to specialist local services.

Education Secretary, Bridget Phillipson said: 

“It’s the driving mission of this government to break the link between a child’s background and what they go on to achieve – our new Best Start Family Hubs will put the first building blocks of better life chances in place for more children. 

“I saw firsthand how initiatives like Sure Start helped level the playing field, transforming the lives of children by putting in place family support in the earliest years of life, and as part of our Plan for Change, we’re building on its legacy for the next generation of children.  

“Making sure hard-working parents are able to benefit from more early help is a promise made, and promise kept – delivering a lifeline of consistent support across the nation, ensuring health, social care and education work in unison to ensure all children get the best start in life.” 

Samantha Dixon MP for Chester North and Neston, said: 

“I welcome the Government’s investment to family services in Cheshire West and Chester which will help to give local children the best start in life. 

“Despite years of austerity, our council has done a remarkable job of protecting key services for families. This new investment will allow them to go further, strengthening what’s already in place and reaching more families who need support.

The £163,352 to open a local Best Start Family Hub is a vital step forward. Alongside free breakfast clubs and expanded childcare, this shows a Labour Government delivering real change for families and children.”

“This is the difference a Labour MP working with a Labour government can do for children and families in our area. 

“This £163,352 investment to open a local Best Start family hub will be transformative –alongside free breakfast clubs and government-funded childcare, we are delivering on our Plan for Change.

Cheshire West and Chester Council Cabinet member for children and young people Adam Langan stated:

“Sure Start was arguably the last Labour Government’s most successful policy so I am delighted that a similar proposal is being brought forward again. 

“Investing in young people and families is plain common sense and we are in a strong position to make changes quickly as we fought to keep all our Children’s centres open during 14 years of austerity.”

The new Best Start Family Hub will compliment work the Labour government already has underway to make family life easier and alleviate the burden on parents, including by expanding government-funded childcare to 30-hours, increasing the reach of school-based nurseries, and rolling out free breakfast clubs in every primary school to support working parents. 

September also saw the launch of the Labour government’s digital service:

http://www.beststartinlife.gov.uk

This is a new national digital hub linked NHS services to offer trusted advice and connect to support.

Pictured - Samantha Dixon, Member of Parliament for Chester North & Neston.