Helping families and whānau to nurture their children’s brain development and build readiness for life-long learning is the Supporting the Early Years Systems (SEYS) initiative led by the Southern Initiative and invested in by the NEXT Foundation.
It is unique in that it combines the latest in neuroscience and child development research, comprehensive population data, the lived experiences of local parents and indigenous knowledge to inform policy, funding decisions, build the capability of partners and ultimately deliver services that create resilience and reduce stress.
Partnering with the Social Investment Agency in 2018 has created the opportunity to bring together the experience and expertise of whānau and families, frontline workers and data and science in a way that can help influence future policy and investment decisions.