A better future for children and young people

Our goal is to keep children safe, for no child, young person or family to be left behind, and to provide high quality, inclusive, and accessible services

Why this is important

The foundations of lifelong physical and mental health are laid down in childhood. We know there are disadvantaged children, young people, and families in our city. We will make sure they can reach high quality, inclusive and accessible services.

We want to make sure that all children and young people in the city get the right help at the right time. We will focus on preventative work to help families to be safe and stable.

We will provide services jointly with valued partners so that children and families can live happy, safe, healthy, and positive lives.

What we will do

Keep children and young children safe and ensure no child or family is left behind

We will:

  • maintain a focus on the city’s most disadvantaged families and ensure services are joined up by improving and developing the Fairer Brighton & Hove Disadvantage Strategy Framework
  • deliver a strong and improving social work and family help service that effectively safeguards children and is anti-racist and anti-discriminatory
  • recruit more foster carers and deliver our Corporate Parenting Strategy

Develop our prevention and family support work

We will:

  • further develop inclusive and accessible Family Hubs to provide the right support at the right time to families
  • improve the mental and physical health and wellbeing of children and young people through the Healthy Child Programme, the schools’ wellbeing service, mental health support teams and the extended adolescent service
  • create more opportunities whereby the voices of all children, young people and families can be heard and can influence and improve the services that support them
  • make sure all young people have places to go to get high quality youth service support to help their social development and give them the best chance at a good life

Support the provision of high quality and inclusive education from early years through to adult learning

We will:

  • deliver the following strategies for children and young people at risk of educational disadvantage:
    • Early Years Strategic Action Plan
    • Special Educational Needs and Disability Strategy
    • Strategy for Tackling Educational Disadvantage
    • Anti-Racist Education Strategy
  • further develop a citywide environmental education programme
  • find ways to address the challenges schools are facing with falling pupil numbers
  • continue investment in our education buildings

Work with partners to deliver ambitious employment, training, and apprenticeship opportunities

We will:

  • support the delivery of the City Employment and Skills Plan
  • increase the take-up of apprenticeships and pre-employment opportunities
  • collaborate with education institutions and businesses to plan for future skills needs

How we will measure progress

We will measure the:

  • number of children in care
  • number of individuals supported by Family Hubs
  • percentage of schools and early years council nurseries that are judged good or outstanding by Ofsted
  • number of 16 and 17-year-olds who are not in education, employment or training (NEET) or whose NEET status is not known