Partnership working with communities supports children and their families

Local communities continue to benefit from close partnership working between Dover District Council and Save the Children - including latest news that another 10 families have 'graduated' from a pioneering new education initiative running in the area.

Parents and carers, and their children who attend St Richard's Primary School in Dover are the latest to successfully complete the nine-week Families and Schools Together (FAST) programme. The Chairman of Dover District Council, Cllr Sue Nicholas, presented children and their families with certificates, and congratulated them at an event at the school on Wednesday 12 February.

The FAST programme, backed by Save the Children and delivered locally by a range of partners including Dover District Council, supports families by working with parents and children in schools. FAST aims to provide a fun and relaxed space for families to experience a mixture of play and learning activities, coaching and support for parents and carers. The initiative has high success rates in improving family relationships and links between home, school and the local community.

This follows the success of a scheme to provide direct help to families. Eat, Sleep, Learn, Play! is a grant programme run by Save the Children, and coordinated in this area by DDC's Community and Engagement Team. The scheme provides grants for items to make a positive impact on families on a low income. From its launch in the district in November 2013 to 11 February 2014, 139 grants have been awarded to local families.

Cllr Sue Chandler, DDC Cabinet Member for community said: "We are very grateful to Save the Children for working with Dover District on these successful projects to support families in our district, and we are proud to be partners in the delivery of these programmes for our communities."

Anna Kettley, Head of Programmes for South of England at Save the Children said: "We believe that every child should have a fair chance to do the best they can at school and that every family should have access to proper support in their local area. We have been delighted to work with DDC to deliver FAST, and Eat, Sleep, Learn, Play!"

For more information on the innovative work helping communities across Dover District, call the Communication and Engagement Team at DDC on (01304) 872061.