Enabling children and young people to thrive
In Rotherham, we want our children and young people to start well, grow with support, and feel safe and heard. We aim to create a place where they can dream big, knowing that no matter their background or challenges, they have the opportunity to achieve their aspirations and reach their full potential. Providing stability, skills and opportunity for our children and young people will inevitably benefit Rotherham as a whole. By ensuring our young people have the best possible start in life, by empowering them and enabling them to flourish, we can make them feel like they have a stake in our town and encourage them to be part of its successful future.
The differences you will see:
Deliver baby packs to Rotherham families to ensure every family has access to essential items from the beginning of the child’s life
Our Family Help offer is shaped to offer a graduated response to families based on need. It will continue to provide essential support, resources and guidance that families need to thrive. By focusing on providing help and support at the earliest opportunity, working with partners undertaking assessments, early intervention, wellbeing and resilience, we empower families to overcome challenges and achieve positive outcomes. We will continue to work alongside Government guidance as part of the Families First Partnership Programme, which aims to support safeguarding partners with the implementation of children’s social care reforms. Our approach provides families and their wider networks with the skills and resilience to support themselves when experiencing challenges and ensures they know where to seek support if it is required, so that children grow up happy, safe, and healthy, with a strong foundation to develop the skills and qualifications needed to achieve success and reach their full potential.
As part of our commitment to ensuring that every child in Rotherham gets the best possible start in life, we are providing Baby Packs so that families have the essential items they need from birth. These packs will help to ease the pressure for new families, such as clothes, toys and books, and other useful items for the first six months of the baby’s life.
Inclusive SEND provision in the borough, including a new SEND hub in the town centre ensuring accessible support for all children and their families
Investing in inclusive provisions for children and young people with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) in Rotherham is a key priority for the Council. We recognise that children and young people have different strengths and needs, and services need to be differentiated so that all children and young people experience success. Due to this, we are committed to continuing to ensure the sufficiency of SEND provision and activity in the borough, so it is inclusive to all. By working with key partners, the Rotherham Special Educational Needs, Disabilities and Alternative Provision (SENDAP) Strategy is working to drive forward the improvements that have already started across the borough and make the required changes so that children and young people in Rotherham achieve the very best outcomes. Over the next 5 years we will continue to increase the proportion of children who are educated within a mainstream setting. This is so children with special educational needs can be educated in their nearest school, build friendships within their communities and be prepared for life beyond school.
Support for young people to achieve their potential (links to the enhancing skills priority, under the economy outcome)
Children and young people will benefit from targeted skills and training initiatives that equip them with the tools and knowledge needed to succeed in a dynamic and evolving economy. As a vital part of Rotherham’s future, ensuring young people can fulfil their potential and achieve their ambitions is a top priority. This can be achieved by providing access to quality work experience, raising awareness of career paths and progression routes, and removing barriers to success. Promoting apprenticeships, traineeships, and work experience will help young people transition into paid employment and build a strong foundation for their future careers.
