Our research, detailed in a new report, reveals that half of parents with a child of five or under feel unsure about what local support is available to them.
Half of parents with young children across England (51%) don’t feel confident knowing what support is offered in their local area, new NSPCC research has revealed.
The poll, conducted by YouGov, revealed 66% of parents with a child of five or under had heard of Family Hubs, but fewer than one in six (16%) had used one, raising fears many are struggling alone.
Family Hubs are set up to make life easier for those in their community by providing a range of services to children, young people and their parents under one roof. Health services, parenting support and housing and financial advice are among the services available at the hubs.
The NSPCC’s new report, It Takes a Place: Multi-Agency Safeguarding in Family Hubs examines how safeguarding operates within these hubs. It draws on practitioner interviews, case reviews and national polling of parents.
Read more and download the report
The report argues that Family Hubs both support families and strengthen the safeguarding of children, and that their potential is limited by several factors. These include constraints on professionals to access and share information, and inconsistencies around the thresholds that families must reach to access support.
National roll-out presents an opportunity
The roll out of Best Start Family Hubs across England is a clear opportunity for the UK government to strengthen this service and ensure both parents and children have access to the vital support they need, no matter where they live.
For hubs to fulfil their potential, Government must firstly fully support local areas to raise awareness of what hubs can offer and help agencies to have a consistent and more joined up approach to keeping children safe.
In light of this, we are calling for the government to:
1) Work nationally in England as well as locally to make Family Hubs easier to find and understand for parents, and more embedded into communities.
2) Clearly explain how the hubs link with local services that keep children safe, including social workers, health workers, teachers and early year practitioners, so everyone knows their roles and how they fit together.
3) Ensure Family Hubs have strong, stigma free links to children’s social care, offering advice to staff and quick referrals when needed, while still staying open and welcoming to all families.
4) Make it mandatory for all professionals in the hubs to follow a joined-up approach to safeguarding, ensuring everyone uses the same language, understands risk levels and can make informed decisions.
Alexandra Galvin, Senior Policy Research Officer at the NSPCC and author of the report, said: “For many parents, navigating support services in their communities can feel like an overwhelming and complicated web, but no family should be left in the dark without the necessary support they need.
“This latest report highlights that when families know about and can access their local family hub, they can become a place where babies, children and young people are safeguarded effectively and supported to thrive.
“If the government can embed these hubs into the community and make sure professionals have the resources to work together and share information, we can build a system that identifies need earlier, responds more effectively, and gives every child the safe and supported start to life they deserve.”
Worried about a child?
You can contact the NSPCC Helpline by calling 0808 800 5000 or emailing help@NSPCC.org.uk
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Sources
All figures, unless otherwise stated, are from our polling with YouGov plc. The polling was conducted in January 2026 with a nationally representative sample size of 2,084 parents of children aged 0-5 living in England. Participants were recruited from across all regions and reflected a spread of parental ages and socio-economic groups.