Westminster Life: Celebrating Family Hubs - real help, close to home
This week, Peterborough had something to celebrate with the announcement of a new Family Hub to be opened at the Gladstone Community Centre, writes city MP Andrew Pakes.
I am passionate about supporting families and children. After the cuts to SureStart and youth services under the last government, rebuilding support for families is one of my priorities. That’s why I invited the Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson, and a special guest appearance from Peppa Pig to Honeyhill Family Hub last week. These centres are part of a major national drive to rebuild family services, and I am proud that Peterborough is leading the way.
Back in May, I welcomed news of a £1.5 million investment in Peterborough’s Family Hubs. These spaces are already transforming lives, offering parents, carers, and children easy access to support on everything from early years development and mental health to housing, nutrition, and family relationships. Under Labour, we promised to give every child the best possible start in life. Seeing the work underway to make sure that promise is being delivered, right here in our city, is what politics should be about.
With four active Family Hubs now running, Honeyhill, First Steps, East, and Orton Child and Family Centres, Peterborough is showing how public services work best when they are joined up and locally led. The next hub, opening soon at the Gladstone Community Centre, will expand this support even further, ensuring more families can get help close to home.
At their heart, Family Hubs bring together NHS professionals, the council, and community groups under one roof. Parents can drop in to get advice on breastfeeding, early language, or SEND support; grandparents can find support for mental health or wellbeing; families can get guidance on debt, nutrition, or housing. The goal is simple: no family should feel left to face challenges alone. My passion for this is backed by Councillors Shabina Qayyum and Katy Cole, who lead on this at Peterborough City Council.
Labour’s Best Start campaign draws proudly on the legacy of Sure Start, which transformed outcomes for children in the years after it was introduced by the last Labour government. We know what a difference early intervention can make. After 14 years of cuts that hollowed out those vital services, this government is restoring them, with ambition and purpose.
Nationally, Labour is on track to open 1,000 Best Start Family Hubs by April 2026. Alongside the expanded 30 hours of free childcare, free breakfast clubs for every primary school, and the roll-out of school-based nurseries, this is all part of a coherent plan to make family life easier and more affordable. Together, these measures could save working parents thousands of pounds a year, money that makes a real difference in homes across Peterborough.
As your Member of Parliament, it’s been a privilege to work with the Ministers, Councillors and providers to secure this progress locally. These developments show what can be achieved when a Labour MP works hand in hand with a Labour government: practical change that strengthens families and our community.
Because every child in Peterborough deserves the best start in life, and that’s exactly what we’re delivering.