Middlesbrough Council will team up with national charity Thrive at Five to work with children, parents and carers across the town, along with the services that support them.
Councillors on Middlesbrough Council’s Executive voted on Wednesday evening to launch the five-year partnership with the charity, which supports children to ensure they have the strong foundations needed for life and learning.
The meeting heard stark figures about the low levels of school readiness in some parts of the town, with a 40% gap between the Nunthorpe and Central wards. School readiness is a measure of how prepared a child is to succeed in school cognitively, socially and emotionally.
Cllr Jan Ryles, Executive Member for Adult Social Care and Public Health on Middlesbrough Council, said: “We are committed to doing everything possible to provide children with the opportunity to fulfil their potential and live a happy, healthy and successful life.
“The quality of a child’s early years is vital for their future. Those who are developmentally ready to begin school will often have a happier and healthier childhood, while those that start behind can fall further behind.”
Aida Cable, CEO for Thrive at Five, said: “We are delighted to have the opportunity to work with Middlesbrough Council and to support all they are doing to help improve outcomes for children in their earliest years.
“As we set out on this exciting journey we look forward to the collective and powerful impact that we can make by uniting in our efforts to raise the next generation.”
Mark Adams, Director of Public Health South Tees, said: “We are excited to talk, listen and work together with families and carers in Middlesbrough to help our children’s development from birth to the classroom.
“Children in our town deserve the best start in life and equal access to support and opportunities and we believe our partnership with Thrive at Five can help to deliver that.”
The Thrive at Five programme – which has already been successfully introduced in Redcar and Cleveland – will listen to parents, carers, teachers and health providers to shape the best approach for children in Middlesbrough.
It will work with Middlesbrough’s existing Family Hubs network and bring together voluntary and charitable organisations, nurseries, schools and everybody involved in supporting families to embed a joined up, sustainable approach.
The programme aims to improve outcomes in five key areas – children’s early language and communication, parent infant relationships, parental wellbeing, quality of home learning environments, and the quality of early education and childcare.
It sits within the wider work and commitment that Middlesbrough Mayor Chris Cooke has made to improving the future of young people a foundation of his Council Plan.
He has pledged to improve educational attainment, supported SHiFT – a groundbreaking new scheme to break the cycle of crime and exploitation among children in Middlesbrough – and has just confirmed the launch of a Childhood Enrichment Team to offer trips and cultural experiences to all children, regardless of their background.
Speaking at the meeting, he said: “There should not be such a large gap in school readiness between two wards in Middlesbrough – it’s just not acceptable.
“While we can’t hope to shift the dial overnight we do need to work every day to make that gap smaller, and projects like this and others such as SHiFT and the Childhood Enrichment Team are part of a long-term plan.
“The changes can lead to a shift in how young people see themselves and their town. This is about aspirations and the futures of our young people.”