Families celebrate 5 years of Blackpool Better Start’s Early Communication Team

Celebrating 5 years of the Early Communication Team

Blackpool Better Start recently celebrated 5 years since the launch of its Early Communication Team. Helping to improve outcomes for hundreds of young children in Blackpool identified with speech and language delays.

Families who have been supported by the service were invited to North Family Hub. This was for a 5th birthday party, with circus skills, parachute games and sensory play.

Since its launch in 2020, the team of early years specialists have worked with 593 pre-school children referred by a health visitor, their early years setting, or other professional working with them.

How the service works

The free service takes place in the family home over a 10-week period. It focuses on coaching and empowering parents with the skills and confidence to help their child’s communication development.

The experience of local parents

Emma was referred for support for her 3-year-old son, Hunter: "When the home visitor first came, he was extremely behind. He wasn't meeting any of the milestones where he should have been. Now we're above where we should have been for his age now. It's the best thing ever because we sort of thought that he wasn't going to talk and then hearing him say, ‘Mummy’ and ‘I love you’ and things like that. There's nothing better in the whole world". “Now he's just like any other kid. So, when he goes to nursery and when he goes to school, he's going to be just like another child. He's not going to be seen as the different child or the child that can't do things.”

The foundations of the service

The team use Hanen Spark strategies. Children are assessed at the start and end of the home visiting service, and then again 12 weeks later using WellComm screening to check their progress.

WellComm is a speech and language screening toolkit used by early years professionals and schools. It identifies children - typically between the ages of 2 and 4 who may have language and communication difficulties.

Research suggests that children developing their speech normally without intervention make 8 steps of progress on the WellComm framework. Children having had the home visiting service are making, on average, 9.3 steps of progress.

By delivering the service in the home, the team can help to reduce parents’ worries about time, money and anxiety attending appointments. Often, the children feel most comfortable in their own surroundings.

Parents are also encouraged to attend stay and play speech and language groups in Family Hubs to further boost their confidence.

Lottie’s mum, Leanne explains: “It got Lottie intense interaction with speech and language support, but on a play-based level. Then within about 2 months, she was talking. It’s pretty special”.

“I felt like I needed it as well. I needed that support in how to speak to her. We felt that at the playgroup we came to, she was able to be herself and I could talk to like-minded parents. I’ve met some lovely friends that I still have now through the playgroup. It was a real benefit that we sort of got a community between us as well.”

Working with the Home Visiting Service and Speech, Language and Communication Triage Panel

The Home Visiting Service is part of Better Start's Speech, Language and Communication Pathway in Blackpool to improve outcomes for all children aged 0 - 4 years. Children with identified needs are referred into the Speech Language and Communication Triage Panel. It’s a multi-agency partnership which enables a single assessment and referral point for the Early Years Workforce.

The panel includes representatives from the NHS, Blackpool Better Start, the local authority, and a commissioned Speech Language and Communication service, to work collaboratively to identify and support children in the town. It helps to put children forward for referrals and interventions.

Since 2020, the triage panel has discussed 5,468 children. Of those children that have been referred to the panel, 94% have been allocated a service. And, 55% of children referred live in the most deprived households in Blackpool (IMD1 2019).

Last year only 1.7% of children were referred to other services following support allocated by the panel.

In the 3 years where the new Early Years Foundation Stage Profile (EYFSP) measure has been used, there has been a 3.1% increase in the number of children reaching a Good Level of Development. This is higher than the national rate of increase.

Reflecting on the past 5 years

Kathryn Morris, Better Start’s Early Years Senior Manager, reflects on the past 5 years:

“We’re so proud of our Early Communication Team for making such a meaningful difference in helping young children communicate and for building trusting and nurturing relationships with families.”

“The data shows us that every single child that we work with has made more than expected progress, which is just amazing. But what is so heart-warming to hear is the feedback from parents - the impact to their lives. They tell us how they play and communicate more with their child and how they feel they’ve now developed a better relationship with their child.”

“We’re so grateful for all the partners and early years professionals across Blackpool who have worked in partnership with us to ensure that children and their families can access the right interventions at the right time, in the right place.”

Find out more information about Blackpool Better Start’s Triage Panel.

About A Better Start

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A Better Start is a 10-year project set-up by The National Lottery Community Fund, the largest community funder in the UK.

Five A Better Start partnerships based in Blackpool, Bradford, Lambeth, Nottingham and Southend are supporting families to give their babies and very young children the best possible start in life. Working with local parents, the A Better Start partnerships are developing and testing ways to improve their children’s diet and nutrition, social and emotional development, and speech, language and communication.  

The NCB is coordinating the ambitious A Better Start's NCB-led learning and evidence programme for ABS, disseminating the partnerships’ experiences in creating innovative services far and wide, so that others working in early childhood development or place-based systems change can benefit.