Ofsted and CQC jointly publish thematic review on Start for Life Services

Ofsted and the Care Quality Commission have published findings from their joint thematic review on Start for Life services.

The review,  based on thematic visits to 6 local areas reports that families who access Start for Life services through a family hub have a positive experience with parents reporting that they are more confident in feeding their infants and have better perinatal mental health, and that their children achieve better outcomes.

However the review confirms that local areas are aware that there is more work to do to ensure all families, including those from seldom-heard groups or those who have a disability, can access Start for Life services in every family hub.

The review also notes that some aspects of the Start for Life programme are better developed than others with postnatal services that offer support for perinatal mental health and infant feeding more established than services for expectant parents. The home learning element of the programme for under 2s is also reported to be less well developed in all areas.

See here for the full report