Right to Succeed urges government to back community-led change after ministerial visit to Knowsley
- Jun 2
- 4 min read
Minister for School Standards, Georgia Gould MP visited a Knowsley primary school to learn more about Cradle to Career, a pioneering place-based programme improving outcomes for children and young people across the Liverpool City Region.
Hosted by place-based change charity Right to Succeed at Northwood Community Primary School, the visit showcased the impact of Cradle to Career in Northwood, Knowsley and Halton Lea, Halton, where residents, schools, local authorities, family services, voluntary organisations and funders are working together to improve life chances for children and young people in their communities.
Minister Gould heard how Cradle to Career in Northwood and Halton Lea has contributed to an expected gain of more than half a GCSE grade across all subjects studied, while multidisciplinary teams based in the heart of both communities are increasing engagement with families, reducing child protection escalations and supporting more families to step down from social care to early help.
During the event, Right to Succeed urged the government to consider a national approach that gives communities the agency, trust and long-term support they need to drive change for themselves.
Speaking to attendees at the roundtable event, Minister Gould said:
“This has been so inspiring. I really believe the vision that you’ve set out. It’s so exciting to see how deep the thought is, how strong the model is, and the fact that you’re working in so many different places.
“Each community is taking ownership of it in a different way, but you’re taking the strength of the principles: the leadership of local communities, partnership and that depth of collaboration and trust.
“It’s really, really powerful and exciting to see what you’re doing. I will take that challenge back to government about how we use this thinking, not just in the work we’re doing in DfE, but more generally.”
Cradle to Career started delivering in Northwood and Halton Lea due to high levels of deprivation, persistent attainment gaps and the need for multi-agency support.
Through collaborative working, Cradle to Career in Northwood has achieved:
3,182 children and young people attending a safe space
27% reduction in anti-social behaviour compared to the rest of the region
3.3% reduction in young people not in education, employment or training (NEET)
15% reduction in children with moderate or severe support needs for speech, language and communication
63% increase in families being stepped down from Level 3 social care to early help support
Chris Price, Head of Education at Knowsley Council, said Cradle to Career is helping shape wider thinking across education, SEND and social care:
“We’re taking the learning from Cradle to Career for how we roll out education strategies, SEND and social care reforms because these aren’t isolated reforms, they affect the same children, the same people, the same communities.
“The community are the people that we trust and we need to empower those people. We can’t do it as an education system alone, we need multidisciplinary teams, we need the community to improve attendance and attainment. Instead of looking at this as a local authority or a school system, it’s actually a people system.”
Impact from Cradle to Career in Halton Lea includes:
125% increase in early help assessments thanks to support from family connectors
21% reduction in children with moderate or severe support needs for speech, language and communication through early intervention
881 young people directly involved in decision making
55% reduction in child protection escalations due to better multidisciplinary support
22% reduction in anti-social behaviour due to a wider availability of youth and community services
Penny France, Head of Education at Halton Borough Council, said the flexibility of Cradle to Career funding has helped partners test what works and make better decisions about where statutory funding is invested:
“We know what really works is having sustained investment over time.
“Programmes like Cradle to Career, with their long-term focus, are vital for the communities we serve. They give us the opportunity to test and refine what works, ensuring that limited council and grant funding is directed where it will have the greatest impact.
“This combined approach to funding is key to success, and it’s exactly what underpins the Cradle to Career model. It’s made a big difference.”
Graeme Duncan, CEO of Right to Succeed, which provides backbone support to Cradle to Career, said the programme shows what is possible when communities are given agency to lead change:
“The magic ingredient of the work is agency. We’ve heard from some of the most passionate people we’re ever going to meet today and they have been given the chance to sort things out in their own community, in their own school, in their own organisation, and what they’ve achieved is unbelievable.
“Cradle to Career shows us that there is a very different way. There’s a way where you put this resource in the hands of the community collectively, and boy do they take it further than you could have dared ask them to go. So let’s look at how we make that bigger.”
Cradle to Career first launched in North Birkenhead in 2021, instigated and funded by the Steve Morgan Foundation, and co-funded by SHINE, UBS Optimus Foundation and Wirral Council.
Since 2023 it has rolled out across a further five communities in the Liverpool City Region with additional funding from the Liverpool City Region Combined Authority and support from Mayor Steve Rotheram.
In 2025 it launched in the West Midlands, made possible by The Rigby Foundation, West Midlands Combined Authority, Mayor Richard Parker, The National Lottery Community Fund, Jaguar Land Rover Foundation, UBS Optimus Foundation, The Swann Foundation, Medicor Foundation and local authorities, with plans to roll out across the region.
For more information on Cradle to Career in Halton and Knowsley, visit: https://www.righttosucceed.org.uk/cradle-to-career
ENDS
For press enquiries, please contact: chelseayearsley@righttosucceed.org.uk
