Number of children under five: 18,253 (data from 2021 census).

Index of Multiple Deprivation: out of 317 local authorities (LAs) in England, Bexley was ranked 190th (average rank) and 187th (average score) (based on English indices of deprivation 2019, where rank first = most deprived).

Ethnic diversity: in 2021, according to Census 2021, 71.9% of people in Bexley identified their ethnic group within the "White" category, 12.2% within the "Black, Black British, Black Welsh, Caribbean or African" category, and 9.9% within the "Asian, Asian British or Asian Welsh" category.

Proportion of children eligible for free school meals (FSM) reaching a good level of development (GLD) measured by the Early Years Foundation Stage Profile: in 2022-23, Bexley had 56.6% of children on FSM reaching a GLD, which was among the highest quintile (20%) in all LAs in Cluster 6 based on Nesta’s previous work (on average, 50.1% children eligible for FSM reached a GLD in this cluster). LAs in Cluster 6 were characterised by a high proportion of commuter towns with a higher than average working age population.

In this case study, we have highlighted some key elements of practice that staff in Bexley reported as contributing to good early-years outcomes. These include providing tailored support to parents, developing online resources to help children get ready for school, establishing an NHS partnership to deliver infant and perinatal mental health service, and speech, language and communication (SLC) support.

It is based on an interview in February 2023 with Bexley Council's Lead Early Years Adviser, Children’s Centre Manager (Early Help), 0-19 Years Team Service Lead, Speech and Language Lead and Early Years Adviser, as well as an online survey completed by representatives from Bexley Council before the interview. 

We have selected this case study because Bexley had higher percentages of children eligible for FSM reaching a GLD compared to other LAs in the same cluster identified by Nesta’s previous work (please see figures above).

A key change that Bexley underwent in recent years regarding supporting parenting and home learning environment was the restructure of children’s centres. After the restructure, Bexely had one main children’s centre with an in-house team, with a focus on socialisation improvement for children. They championed the importance of play for young children and encouraged parents to come into the children’s centre. An interviewee described:

The interviewees reported that their dedicated team knew families well and could signpost or refer out quickly. This tailoring to the needs of families was reported by the interviewees as making a difference in Bexley’s early-years work. 

In addition to providing parenting programmes such as Triple P, Solihull Approach and PEEP (Learn Together Programme), Bexley developed an online resource, Born Ready, School Ready, Bexley Ready, to provide advice and support to parents to help children get ready for school. A variety of information was included in this resource, such as toilet training, speech and language, baby massages, as well as the Chat, Play, Read initiative, which recommended home activities.

Bexley Council partnered with Oxleas NHS Foundation Trust and Mind to provide its main mental health services. Bexley has a perinatal mental health team, a perinatal and infant mental health specialist health visitor, a CAMHS team, under-fives team and adult services. Additionally, Mind in Bexley provided access to a range of talking therapies for adults with common mental health problems. 

In Bexley, perinatal mental health counselling was available in the children’s centre. This was a positive approach to help staff get to know families well. Bexley’s perinatal mental health team provided online counselling and the council’s outreach workers also went into families’ homes and invited them to the children’s centre depending on their specific needs. Families were referred to the specialist team if they were struggling with low mood and isolation, so they could be connected with support. The support included specialist assessment, treatment and advice. Women were offered face-to-face appointments in several settings, including the maternity unit they are booked at, local children’s centres or at home.

Bexley partnered with the NHS speech and language team to run SLC support groups in the children's centre. Health visitors in Bexley also used the Early Language Identification Measure (ELIM) as part of their two-year check to identify children’s SLC needs early on. When a child was assessed as needing SLC support, referral information would be shared with parents and the children’s centre. It was reported that around 80%-90% of children referred as having these needs required specialist SLC interventions. 

Bexley trained a number of nurseries to use the Early Talk Boost tool and was in the process of providing the WellComm screener tool in each nursery that did not already have an appropriate SLC assessment tool.

Practitioners in Bexley were also trained for the first line of support in the special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) diagnosis. The Normandy SEND Centre situated within the children’s centre allowed them to conduct interventions, assessments, signposting and play sessions for children. Bexley also created a specialist SEND practitioner role to provide additional support in the community for children with SEND needs.