What is the Better Start Bradford Innovation Hub?
Better Start Bradford was a £49m programme funded by the National Lottery Community Fund to help children in Bowling and Barkerend, Bradford Moor and Little Horton get a better start in life. Over ten years (2015-2025) Better Start Bradford have provided more than 20 projects for pregnant women and families with children aged 0-3. The projects aimed to help to improve children’s emotional and social development, communication and language development, nutrition and reduce obesity.
The Better Start Bradford Innovation Hub was a partnership between Better Start Bradford and Born in Bradford. The Innovation Hub united leading academics from the University of York, the University of Sheffield and the Bradford Institute for Health Research to provide a centre for evaluation of the effectiveness of the Better Start Bradford projects. This has included establishing the world’s first intervention birth cohort – Born in Bradford’s Better Start (BiBBS). The Better Start Bradford Innovation Hub has now rebranded as the BiB FaIR team.
The Better Start Bradford programme concluded in 2025, however, we are working with the National Lottery Community Fund to continue to evaluate the impacts of some of the projects on school readiness from 2025-2028.
You can hear our team sharing some of our latest evaluation findings here:
Social and Emotional Development Webinar
Language and Communication Webinar
Health, Nutrition and Green Space Webinar
Key Contact: Sara Ahern
