A THREE-YEAR plan is being put together so Wellington Town Council really can give families the best start in life.

The national Best Start in Life project will focus on delivering substantial improvements in early years’ outcomes to meet the Government’s target of 75 per cent of five-year-olds reaching a good level of educational development by 2028.

Rachel Parker, the strategic manager and head of public health nursing at Somerset Council, spoke with local councillors back in January and said it would be ‘fantastic’ to utilise the Kings Arms Community Hub in Wellington to spearhead a pilot project in the county.

Now, members of the town council’s community committee have been given more details on how they could support the national Best Start in Life project between 2026 and 2029.

The council’s community development officer, Laura Batcha, in a report, said: “The programme focuses on supporting families from pregnancy through the early years by improving access to advice, parenting support, and early intervention services.

“Responsibility for co-ordinating family hub delivery sits with Somerset Council, with support from NHS services, early years’ providers, schools, and voluntary sector partners.

“Within Wellington, the Kings Arms Community Hub provides an important local access point where community-based family support activity can take place.

“The town council’s role is not to replace statutory services but to support local delivery by strengthening access to support within the community, enabling partnership working, hosting appropriate activity through community infrastructure and supporting engagement with families who may not traditionally access services.

“The Best Start in Life strategy has therefore been developed to clarify the town council’s role within the programme and provide a structured approach to delivery over the next three years.”

Councillors agreed to approve the Best Start in Life strategy as the framework to guide the council’s involvement in the programme.

It was also agreed that the strategy would be reviewed on an annual basis.

“The Best Start in Life programme aligns strongly with the council’s wider ambitions to support community wellbeing, prevention, and early intervention,” added the report.

The Government plans to launch the new initiative to support families from April 2026 in every local authority area, with Wellington earmarked to start things in Somerset.

The family hub will provide essential services including parenting support, healthcare, and early education under one roof at the Kings Arms and allow the council to strengthen access to family support.

Cllr Andrew Govier, speaking in January, said: “We need to get on with this.

“Every day that goes by is a day we are not helping to improve a young person’s life.

“We have to get on with this and crack on.

“We have been treading water in recent years with youth provision in Wellington – so this is a very exciting opportunity for us.”

If everything goes to plan, the Best Start in Life programme will help to ensure that families in Wellington can access support locally and earlier, when it is most needed.