Bright Beginnings: Our service supporting you and your baby in their first 1001 days 

Providing extra support for babies and their families

A pilot scheme is providing additional support to babies and their families in the first 1001 days of life.

Bright Beginnings is a Start for Life pilot ran by the Care Group and funded by Department of Health and Social Care until March 2025. Families with children from pregnancy until 2 years of age can access the service.

It is an enhanced health visiting service to families and children. There are four areas of the pilot: perinatal; immunisation plus; social communication; and social prescribing.

1. Perinatal support includes support for mums who are experiencing low mood from pregnancy through to 12 months after birth.
2. Immunisation plus includes our immunisation information clinics where you can get information on vaccines, infant feeding, and starting your baby on solids.
3. Social communication support involves giving parents the confidence to play with their children and engaging in activities such as singing and story time to improve their child’s communication skills development.
4. Social prescribing prioritises the social needs of the family, including working with families that have special education needs or disabilities.

Referrals to the scheme are made in discussion with families following a universal contact with health visitor, community staff nurse or nursery nurse. Referrals are also being received from some Tower Hamlets GP practices.

Bright Beginnings offers home visits, clinics in family hubs and GP surgeries. They will also see families in other venues such as Toy House, Idea Store and local parks.

Start for Life is a national Government scheme, provided locally in Tower Hamlets through Family Hubs.

Other services for babies and families

Your local Family Hub provides services to support the national Start for Life scheme. Family Hubs in Tower Hamlets provid

• Infant feeding to parent-infant relationships
• Perinatal mental health
• Parenting support
• Early language development and the home learning environment.

Can I get information online? Yes, visit Better Health

Better Health is a website that offers trusted NHS advice and guidance on various health topics. There are also resources to support the Start for Life scheme and so you’ll find further information to support you and your baby in the first 1001 days of life on the website linked below. 

Visit Better Health