Innovation in local government is about improving the lives of the people in our
communities. Browse through our case studies to see the many innovative programmes councils are involved
in.
We wanted to make accessing evidence-based parenting support easier for parents. We wanted to run programmes in local communities and schools, which parents would find available on their doorstep.
Healthy Movers is for children aged two to five years old. Through a range of physical play and activities, the programme aims to improve children’s physical literacy and development, and support their social and emotional wellbeing, which helps children gain a better start in life.
Hull City Council Healthy Lifestyles Team have designed and created a programme of early years provision to promote physical activity and movement at the earliest opportunity. The programme is designed to increase access to physical activity, provide opportunities to meet Chief Medical Officer guidelines and develop physical literacy with school readiness in mind.
Waltham Forest Council has established a dynamic, youth-focused initiative to provide young people (aged 11-25) with free, accessible spaces and activities that address not only crime prevention but also broader issues such as poverty, anti-social behaviour (ASB), and mental health.
Brighton and Hove Council employs a multi-agency, stepped care approach to support children and young people’s mental health. These services are embedded in every secondary school, extend to primary schools and colleges, and offer a range of interventions to support mental health at all levels.
Sutton’s family hubs have a universal parenting service that has been developed for parents by parents. The programmes are facilitated by trained parent group leaders and have been incorporated into the wider parenting support offer of the family hubs.
We wanted to take a play-based approach for supporting rich parent/child interactions to help young children develop their speech, language and communication skills. We also wanted parents and carers to be aware of the positive impact they have on their child’s development and the simple everyday things that they can do to help.
To reduce the injuries that young children from the most disadvantaged families suffer at home, a University of Nottingham research team worked closely with Nottingham’s Small Steps Big Changes team, children’s public health 0-19 nursing services, children’s centre staff, family mentors and parents to develop, deliver and measure the impact of the innovative Stay One Step Ahead programme.