About Flying Start
Flying Start is Luton's pregnancy and early years strategy. We aim to improve outcomes for children from pregnancy to their 5th birthday as a foundation to a healthy future. Flying Start interventions build on both national and international evidence. They focus on the very earliest years of a child's life, starting in pregnancy with the aim of early intervention improving children's outcomes and future life chances.
Flying Start aims to ensure that young children in Luton have a Flying Start. It has a particular focus on those babies and children who are born in areas of the town with the highest levels of disadvantage and poorer outcomes, as we know these families could suffer health inequalities. Flying Start, as a partnership of agencies, will work to ensure these babies are given the very best start in life, reducing the impact of disadvantage on their future life chances. We will support easy access to services for our families. Outreach will form a key part of our delivery, working with our communities in Luton to make it easy to understand how to get support early.
Getting fathers involved is also a focus with Flying Start. Fathers today spend much more time with their young children than they did 30 years ago. Research shows that fathers play a crucial role in young children's development and that the early years are particularly important.
The Early Years Alliance/Flying Start programme is a beneficiary of generous funding from Luton Rising and The National Lottery Community Fund.
Flying Start seeks to improve outcomes for children by intervening early when help and support is needed. Flying Start is delivering services that will:
1. Improve babies' and young children's communication and language skills
…so that significantly more children, by their 5th birthday, will have age-appropriate communication skills, will interact effectively with adults and children, resulting in better educational outcomes and improved employment opportunities.
2. Support healthy bonding between parents and their babies and young children
…so that more children are securely attached and emotionally resilient, with improved school readiness. In the longer term the impact of poor maternal mental health & associated risk factors on children's outcomes will be reduced.
3. Support improved birth outcomes and encourage healthy diet and lifestyles for babies, young children and their families
… so that babies will have improved birth outcomes; with fewer women obese in pregnancy, improved understanding of nutrition and healthy behaviours, breastfeeding will be increased and fewer children are obese or have dental decay, with improved health and wellbeing into adulthood.
4) Within 5 years, parent and community-led decision making will positively and systematically change the lives and life chances of 0-5 year olds for future generation
Keeping Families Safe- Safeguarding Statement
Flying Start Luton is a project led by Early Years Alliance. Please see below our organisation's Safeguarding Statement
The Early Years Alliance is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people and vulnerable adults. All staff are expected to share this commitment and follow the policy and procedures to continuously promote a culture of safety.
Aim
The Alliance has four key commitments that provide a consistent and coherent strategy for safeguarding children, young people and vulnerable adults in all services provided by or affiliated to the Alliance.
The Alliance commits to:
1. Empower children, young people, and vulnerable adults, promoting their right to be strong, resilient, actively listened to, and heard.
2. Upholds a culture of safety in which children, young people and vulnerable adults are protected from abuse and harm in all areas of its curriculum and service delivery.
3. Prevent harm and respond promptly and appropriately to all incidents or concerns of abuse that may occur, working with statutory agencies to achieve the best possible outcomes for every child.
4. Increase safeguarding confidence, knowledge and good practice throughout its training and learning programmes for adults, advocating support and representation for those in greatest need.
Keeping Families Safe
Flying Start Luton is a project led by Early Years Alliance. Please see below our organisation's Safeguarding Statement
The Early Years Alliance is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people and vulnerable adults. All staff are expected to share this commitment and follow the policy and procedures to continuously promote a culture of safety.
Aim
The Alliance has four key commitments that provide a consistent and coherent strategy for safeguarding children, young people and vulnerable adults in all services provided by or affiliated to the Alliance.
The Alliance commits to:
1. Empower children, young people, and vulnerable adults, promoting their right to be strong, resilient, actively listened to, and heard.
2. Upholds a culture of safety in which children, young people and vulnerable adults are protected from abuse and harm in all areas of its curriculum and service delivery.
3. Prevent harm and respond promptly and appropriately to all incidents or concerns of abuse that may occur, working with statutory agencies to achieve the best possible outcomes for every child.
4. Increase safeguarding confidence, knowledge and good practice throughout its training and learning programmes for adults, advocating support and representation for those in greatest need.
