Dave Thomas: Initiatives to give families a positive start

I wanted to let you know this week about a few events going on that may be of interest to you, your friends and family. 

Here in the Bay, we want you, and our children and young people, to feel and be safe and to live well. Which is why we are continuing to work towards Torbay being a child-friendly place by achieving UNICEF UK Child-Friendly Community Status and committing to our Family Hubs. 

From Thursday, November 14, for one week, our Family Hubs are coming together with a range of other partners and practitioners to provide free events celebrating the popular national Baby Week. 

Baby Week Torbay will be a celebration of babies and all the people who care for them. Since our Family Hubs opened in early 2023, they have brought families and essential early years services together to ensure that all children in Torbay have the best start in life. 

I know that lots of parents and carers enjoyed what Baby Week had to offer in 2023 and that it gave them opportunities to meet other parents and learn new ways to support their child’s development. The team behind last year’s event has taken on board all the feedback given, hence the change for the event to take place across the weekend. More activities will be available and aimed at dads and male carers. This will lead to a programme that provides a more inclusive set of activities. 

All the free events here in the Bay can be found on the National Baby Week website: www.babyweek.co.uk/all-events. There are over 25 events taking place over Baby Week, but to give you a flavour of what’s happening, there will be a Ramble Club, Baby Massage with Dad, a Young Parent Support Group, and for those who have their baby arriving soon, there is a Bump Club’s Baby Shower, giving you the opportunity to meet others who are due soon. 

Baby Week is only one week, but if you are looking for support, advice, and guidance as your children grow, there are a range of activities and support available at all three of our Family Hubs all year round. The Torquay Hub can be found at St. Edmunds, Victoria Park Road. In Paignton, the Beehive Family Hub is based at Bishops Place, and in Brixham, you can find the Family Hub at The Barn in the Brixham Enterprise Estate, just off Rea Barn. 

Moving onto another event that may be of interest to you. We are getting ready for our next Residents Engagement Event, this time we will be focusing on regeneration projects in Paignton. This event will be on Saturday, November 23, and will be in Victoria Street, Paignton, outside Iceland, and the NatWest Bank. We will be there from 10am to 4pm. 

The focus of this event will be on the redevelopment and improvement projects currently underway or about to get underway in Paignton. You will be able to find out more about the plans for Station Square, the Victoria Centre, the Paignton and Preston Promenade Scheme, and the Oldway Mansion restoration project. 

These bimonthly events are a chance for you to meet with us, which includes councillors from all parties and council staff to talk about what matters to you. These events really do help us to capture thoughts and feedback on consultations and our once-in-a generation regeneration plans. 

The way we use our town centres has changed. We are at the start of some significant changes being made to Paignton. The result will see the provision of much-needed housing for local people, the area rejuvenated, and businesses being attracted back into the town. Alongside this, the masterplan for the seafront areas will protect the town from rising sea levels and flooding. 

I really do encourage you to come along to this engagement event and have a chat with us to fully understand our plans to ensure Paignton’s town centre and high street remain fit for the future.