Leadership Development Programme

Best Beginnings

Best Beginnings is an NHS-approved national charity that provides support and information to parents and caregivers to help give children the best start in life and reduce inequalities in outcomes.

Overview

Best Beginnings partnered with us to strengthen leadership practices that support their mission to reduce health inequalities, particularly for Black, Asian, and ethnic minority families during early years parenting. The programme aimed to enhance cultural competency, foster team collaboration, and embed inclusive practices that empower the organisation to serve diverse communities effectively.

Approach

The programme was tailored to Best Beginnings’ strategic priorities, including improving access to resources for underserved families and fostering an inclusive organisational culture. Using IDC’s habit formation model, the programme was designed to deliver sustained behaviour change through leadership workshops, habit tracking, and follow-up sessions.

Our approach started with stakeholder engagement to align the programme with organisational goals. Leaders were guided through key strategies to improve cultural sensitivity and team dynamics. The programme included:

Leadership workshops: Sessions on emotional intelligence, team dynamics, and cultural sensitivity equipped leaders with tools to address health disparities and ensure equitable access to support for underserved families.
Habit tracking and application: Participants committed to behaviours such as fostering open dialogue and inclusive decision-making, tracked over six weeks using IDC’s HabiTrack™ tool.
Reflection and reinforcement: Follow-up discussions allowed participants to evaluate their progress, refine habits, and sustain improvements.

IDC evaluation model

The programme was evaluated using IDC’s model:

Knowledge acquisition: Post-session feedback indicated an 85% increase in participants’ understanding of cultural competency and leadership strategies.
Application of learning: Reflection data revealed 80% of participants successfully applied inclusive practices in their teams.
Behaviour change: HabiTrack™ data showed 78% of participants embedded habits such as active listening into their routines.
Culture and organisational change: Engagement scores improved by 20%, and service satisfaction metrics increased by 15%.

Impact

Cultural competency: Leaders reported a 15% improvement in their ability to address the unique needs of diverse families.
Team cohesion: Engagement scores improved by 20%, reflecting stronger collaboration and alignment with organisational goals.

Behavioural change highlights

Leaders consistently practised habits such as fostering open communication and reflective decision-making. These behaviours became routine, strengthening the organisation’s capacity to support families equitably and effectively.

20% boost in team engagement scores

85% increase in cultural competency understanding

Testimonials:

“Thank you please continue to run and offer this out to others for personal development, and growth and to better those conversations and strengths needed to make HEE the best place to work”