Education support packs have been shared with families across Wirral as the council and a local children’s charity continue to support parents through Covid-19.

Wirral Council’s Early Childhood Service and The Foundation Years Trust have been determined to ensure that as many parents of under 5s as possible receive free and fun resources to support their child’s development and feed their minds at home.

The education packs, which include activity booklets, craft materials, books and stationery, are part of the Department for Education’s (DfE) Hungry Little Minds campaign, which the council and the Trust deliver to support local parents in their role as their child’s most important educator.

One parent who received a resource pack said: “Thank you for your pack, you are all angels and the work you are all doing is amazing. The family is shielding, these packs are a lifeline.”

The education packs are sponsored by DfE’s Hungry Little Minds campaign and supported by Steve Morgan Foundation and Arriva North West.

Staff from the council’s children’s centres, The Foundation Years Trust, Involve North West and Koala North West have teamed up to deliver the packs to families.

Cllr Tom Usher, Cabinet Member for Children and Families said: “This is a great example of what a difference partnership working makes to our community, especially during challenging times.

“Many parents will be feeling the pressures of Covid-19 particularly with disruption to usual home life. This will help to ease one worry for parents."

Anna-Louise Van Der Merwe, Trust Director of the Foundation Years Trust said: “This is an incredibly difficult time for both the children and parents as their normal schooling routine has been impacted, however we want to ensure that we can reach as many 0-5 year olds as possible.

“At the moment we are focusing on the key priority of children learning through chatting and playing with their parents, as we know that both the children’s and parent’s mental health is crucial in this difficult time.

"We are so pleased that we can help as many local families as possible and will continue to do so through the Parents Make the Difference and Hungry Little Minds campaign."

Hungry Little Minds is a campaign launched by the Department for Education to provide lots of simple tips and activities to build children’s early speech and language skills that families can slot in their routine, and that children love. The Foundation Years Trust is one of the campaign’s local delivery partners, supported by Wirral Council’s ‘My Child Can’ learning initiative, and the National Literacy Trust.

More support can be found on the council’s My Child Can Facebook page and The Foundations Years Trust’s website: www.foundationyearstrust.org.uk