Over 300 volunteers have given their time and skills to make a real, lasting difference to families in Bowling and Barkerend, Bradford Moor and Little Horton since the start of the Better Start Bradford programme.
View projectFunded through the Happy Early Years (HEY!) Fund, Sensory Art Adventures provided sessions using various art activities for families with 0-3s and expectant parents.
View projectGrandmother of 13, Shaheena received £2,500 to deliver a soft play group at Horton Park Primary School.
View projectToddle Ball received £1,705 to deliver fun and engaging football sessions for families with 0-4s.
View projectWhere the Wild Things Are received £2,499 to deliver a six-week stay and learn group offering families with 0-4s the opportunity to meet live animals up close.
View projectSaturday 31st May 2025 @ 1:30 pm – 3:30 pm –
Join the Better Place team for outdoor fun for families with children aged 0-3 at the natural play area at parks in the Better Start Bradford area.
View eventWonder Tots received £2,500 to offer a stay and learn group to give young children a head start before joining nursery education in a fun, interactive and safe environment.
View projectImagination Tree received £2,232 to deliver fun and playful sessions with creative storytelling activities by exploring different stories and bringing them to life with interactive play.
View projectThe Happy Early Years (HEY!) Fund enabled parents and carers in the Better Start Bradford area to apply for up to £2,500 to develop ideas and initiatives for local families and their 0-3s.
View projectHappy Time received £2,346 to offer an educational outdoor group with various activities for parents and children including nature play, sensory play, messy play and much more.
View projectLittle Farmers received £2,204 to offer various activities for children and parents, centred around learning about farm animals. Activities included crafts, dancing, messy play, rhymes, singing, stories and much more.
View projectThornbury Tots received £2030 to offer various activities for children and parents, including soft play, sensory play, messy play, singing, dancing and exercise.
View projectThursday 1st May 2025 @ 10:00 am – 2:00 pm –
View eventExplore some of the best places to get free support across the Bradford district if you're expecting a baby or have young children.
View pageLittle Minds Matter is a specialised parent-infant relationship service working with infants, their families, and associated professional networks. It formed part of the Better Start Bradford programme from 2018 to 2024.
View projectBorn in Bradford’s Better Start (BiBBS) is a birth cohort study that aims to understand the effects of the early-life interventions led by Better Start Bradford on children’s health and development.
View projectESOL for Pregnancy was an embedded English course helping women develop their language skills. ESOL with Infants was a follow-on project helping parents and carers develop their language skills through sharing books.
View projectActing as a ‘professional friend’, volunteer doulas helped pregnant women and birthing people navigate their pregnancy journey and make positive choices as part of the Better Start Bradford programme from 2017 to 2024.
View projectFamily Nurse Partnership (FNP) is an evidence-based, preventative programme for first-time parents. It was delivered as part of the Better Start Bradford programme from 2016 to 2019.
View projectMECSH is a programme of regular home visits with the same Health Visitor. Originally developed in Australia, it was delivered as part of the Better Start Bradford programme from 2021 to 2023.
View projectThe Innovation Fund enabled organisations to pilot new, innovative approaches robustly over a period of a year, with potential for them to become a fully-fledged Better Start Bradford project.
View projectResilient Dads is a holistic personal development and parenting skills programme aiming to develop the skills and competence of dads/male carers to support the social, emotional, and cognitive development of their 0-3s.
View projectThe Play Gym and Hubert St. Kitchen provides a fun, free, creative play space for young children, and provides parents/carers the opportunity to access support, practical training and advice.
View projectThe HIDVA project identifies victims at early stages of domestic abuse and intervenes to provide multiagency support, while upskilling practitioners on how to recognise and respond to domestic abuse.
View projectOlder Yet Wiser received funding to deliver a series of workshops for grandparents with child-caring responsibilities to enable them to contribute to their grandchildren’s social and emotional wellbeing.
View projectHorton Community Farm and Grow To School joined forces to create their Growing Together project to bring parents/carers and young children together to learn to grow, cook and eat their own produce.
View projectThe University of Leeds received funding to improve oral health for 0-3s to deliver their ‘Enhancing the HABIT’ oral health intervention with the area’s Health Visitors.
View projectThe Better Place project has transformed parks and green spaces for the benefit of families with play equipment and facilities specifically designed for 0-3s, right across the Better Start Bradford area.
View projectThe Breastfeeding Support Project helped families meet their breastfeeding goals through trained, employed peer supporters. It was delivered as part of the Better Start Bradford programme from 2018 to 2024.
View projectIncredible Years Toddler Basic is an established evidence-based parenting programme, promoting positive attachment. It was delivered as part of the Better Start Bradford programme from 2018 to 2024.
View projectHome-Start Better Start is a peer support intervention, providing emotional and practical support to families with 0-3 year olds, and ran as part of the Better Start Bradford programme from 2017 to 2024.
View projectHAPPY aimed to reduce childhood obesity risk by targeting an at-risk group - during and after pregnancy - by promoting healthy behaviours. It was part of the Better Start Bradford programme from 2018 to 2022.
View projectBaby Steps is a relationships-based perinatal parent education programme. It was delivered as part of the Better Start Bradford programme from 2018 to 2024.
View projectFind out all about the HEY! Fund celebration, plus a celebration of 10 years of A Better Start
View postI CAN encompassed training sessions, guidance and support for childcare practitioners, designed to improve the language environment for young children attending early years settings.
View projectTalking Together was designed to improve the home learning environment for children aged 2 who are at risk of language development delay, and formed part of the Better Start Bradford programme from 2015 to 2024.
View projectHENRY’s Healthy Families programme guides groups of parents and carers towards healthier habits for the whole family and was part of the Better Start Bradford programme from 2016 to 2024.
View projectThe Forest School Play Project was an adventurous nature-based play programme that has brought an array of learning opportunities for young children, their families and the early years workforce
View projectCooking for a Better Start offered practical cooking sessions to parents/carers of children aged 0-3 years, to build knowledge and skills around cooking low-cost, healthy meals from scratch, and healthy eating
View projectThe Perinatal Support Service helped pregnant women and women with babies who were suffering/at risk from mild-moderate mental health issues, from 2015 to 2024.
View projectCommunity Action Bradford and District (CABAD) present their first findings and options from first phase of legacy work at an event on Thursday 30 January 2025.
View postBetter Start Imagine gifted over 275,000 books to children aged 0-3 from 2016 to 2024, to promote and model the importance of sharing books with young children.
View projectTanya is one of our Home-Start Better Start volunteers. Here she shares how volunteering has increased her confidence and helped her with her own anxiety issues.
View postOur Personalised Midwifery Project provided women and their families with personalised, continuous care before, during and after the birth of their baby. It ran from 2015 to 2024.
View projectWatch the Better Place project's new film, find out about how we're developing the future workforce, and read the latest insight report from our national partnership
View postAcross the Bradford district, Family Hubs support families with children and young people of all ages and at every stage of family life. Start for Life provides extra support to families with young children.
View pageTalking Bradford is a step-by-step guide to help parents and carers support their young children with speech, language and communication development.
View pageOur Director, Gill Thornton, kicks off our news articles for 2025 with her reflections of 2024 and enthusiasm and excitement for the journey this final year of our programme will take
View postDownload the Baby Week Bradford logo, social media images and other promotional resources
View pageLook back at Baby Week Bradford 2024, find out about some fantastic funding news from some of our projects, and enjoy some articles and recent learning webinars
View postTanya is one of our Home-Start Better Start volunteers. Here she shares how volunteering has increased her confidence and helped her with her own anxiety issues.
View postTanya is one of our Home-Start Better Start volunteers. Here she shares how volunteering has increased her confidence and helped her with her own anxiety issues.
View postFrom a range of outdoor play ideas to healthy snack ideas to guidance from Early Years experts, there should be something to help and inspire everyone.
View pageFriday 28th March 2025 @ 9:30 am – 11:30 am –
View eventThursday 27th March 2025 @ 10:00 am – 12:00 pm –
View eventBetter Start Bradford has appointed a collaborative led by CABAD (Community Action Bradford and District) to deliver consultancy support for a project to develop the programme’s legacy.
View postAs we approach the conclusion of the 10-year Better Start Bradford programme in 2025, we held the first in a series of events to share our learning and celebrate the programme's achievements.
View postGo on a playful adventure with your little one during Baby Week Bradford and beyond with this free family play sheet
View pageWednesday 18th September 2024 – Thursday 18th September 2025 @ 10:00 am – 12:00 pm –
Join the Better Place team for outdoor fun for families with children aged 0-3 at the natural play area at parks in the Better Start Bradford area.
View eventWe invite you all to make room for play from 14-20 November for Baby Week Bradford 2024! Programme of event and activities now live...
View pageTanya is one of our Home-Start Better Start volunteers. Here she shares how volunteering has increased her confidence and helped her with her own anxiety issues.
View postTanya is one of our Home-Start Better Start volunteers. Here she shares how volunteering has increased her confidence and helped her with her own anxiety issues.
View postTanya is one of our Home-Start Better Start volunteers. Here she shares how volunteering has increased her confidence and helped her with her own anxiety issues.
View postTanya is one of our Home-Start Better Start volunteers. Here she shares how volunteering has increased her confidence and helped her with her own anxiety issues.
View postTanya is one of our Home-Start Better Start volunteers. Here she shares how volunteering has increased her confidence and helped her with her own anxiety issues.
View postThe Neighbourhoods Project ran from 2019 to optimise recruitment into Better Start Bradford projects from under-represented groups, and to ensure that the programme messages reached as many families as possible.
View projectTanya is one of our Home-Start Better Start volunteers. Here she shares how volunteering has increased her confidence and helped her with her own anxiety issues.
View postBaby Week Bradford began in 2018. Find out more about this annual celebration of babies and all those who care for them, and look back at previous years' activities and resources.
View pageEverything you do together helps your baby’s brain develop. It’s never too early to start - from bump, to babies to toddlers. Your baby even recognises family voices before they are born.
View pageTanya is one of our Home-Start Better Start volunteers. Here she shares how volunteering has increased her confidence and helped her with her own anxiety issues.
View postTanya is one of our Home-Start Better Start volunteers. Here she shares how volunteering has increased her confidence and helped her with her own anxiety issues.
View postTanya is one of our Home-Start Better Start volunteers. Here she shares how volunteering has increased her confidence and helped her with her own anxiety issues.
View postWe’re over the moon to welcome you to our new website! We invite you to have a look around…
View postTanya is one of our Home-Start Better Start volunteers. Here she shares how volunteering has increased her confidence and helped her with her own anxiety issues.
View postDownload the Baby Week Bradford logo, social media images and other promotional resources
View pageIn December 2023 as the paths outside glistened with frost, inside The Bradford Hotel, our finalists for the Outstanding Contribution to Earliest Years award eagerly awaited the results. Find out who won...
View postTanya is one of our Home-Start Better Start volunteers. Here she shares how volunteering has increased her confidence and helped her with her own anxiety issues.
View postThursday 27th March 2025 @ 9:15 am – 11:15 am –
View eventThursday 3rd April 2025 @ 9:15 am – 11:15 am –
View eventThursday 10th April 2025 @ 9:15 am – 11:15 am –
View eventWe’re over the moon to welcome you to our new website! We invite you to have a look around…
View postEdwina Linton, Better Start Bradford’s MECSH project lead, who co-ordinated the development and introduction of the Australian MECSH model in Bradford, discusses the challenges and benefits of this programme for families
View postBaby Week Bradford is back for its sixth year from 14-20 November 2023 with the theme - Bradford Babies, Healthy Babies: Ready, Steady, Grow!
View postDownload our Healthy Habits Activity cards, plus signposting to some of our favourite health, nutrition and physical activity resources
View pageCalling humans of all ages....we started our mission to get Bradford wiggling for Baby Week Bradford 2023! Find out more...
View pageTanya is one of our Home-Start Better Start volunteers. Here she shares how volunteering has increased her confidence and helped her with her own anxiety issues.
View postTanya is one of our Home-Start Better Start volunteers. Here she shares how volunteering has increased her confidence and helped her with her own anxiety issues.
View post