Integrated Early Help strategy

The 2000s saw a significant increase in spending directed towards early intervention and prevention services. From 2010, this funding began to significantly decrease and in some areas be discontinued. In Warrington, the council has retained its commitment to deliver vital early help services by continuing to fund our children’s centres and family support services, and we have retained our provision for young people via our youth service.

Latest data shows that almost one in three children in the UK are living in poverty1 and these numbers are continuing to rise. This is placing families under pressure and increasing the need for

multi-agency support services to come together to match families to the right level of support at the right time they need in line with our ‘Thrive’ framework. We recognise that families’ needs can fluctuate and they will also draw on informal networks of support through family and communities.

In Warrington, we believe that by offering access to wide reaching universal and more targeted early help services, this will lead to fewer children and families needing more intensive statutory services.