Bukhman Philanthropies has committed £2 million over five years to Babyzone, the early years charity working to give every child the strongest possible start in life.
Babyzone operates free, open-access hubs in communities across England, offering families with babies and young children a welcoming space to play, learn, and connect — with no sign-ups, no waiting lists, and no cost. Each hub brings together early years programmes, NHS teams, local authority services, and community partners under one roof, creating an integrated model of support for families in areas of high deprivation.
The partnership reflects a shared conviction at the heart of both organisations: that the earliest years shape everything that follows, and that supporting families during this critical period can change the trajectory of a child's entire life.
Bukhman Philanthropies' funding will support the expansion of Babyzone's hub network into more communities across the UK, reaching families with the greatest unmet need.
Critically, it will also help Babyzone turn its everyday practice into rigorous research and evidence — building a data-driven model for early childhood development with the potential to improve outcomes not only in the UK but globally.
Central to this ambition is Babyzone's Parent Confidence Index, developed in partnership with the University of Oxford. The Index measures changes in parental confidence and agency — a metric that Bukhman Philanthropies sees as a genuinely innovative contribution to the early years field, and one that has the potential to inform policy and practice well beyond Babyzone's own hubs.
Daria Bukhman, Co-Founder and Chair of Bukhman Philanthropies, said:
"I am delighted about the opportunity to partner with Babyzone. I have been deeply impressed by the strength of Babyzone's integrated approach, its ability to connect research with practical, on-the-ground delivery, and its meaningful reach into disadvantaged communities. During my visit to one of the hubs, I had the chance to speak with families who have been bringing their babies every week since it opened. They spoke warmly about the friendly staff, the sense of community, the educational support, and, most importantly, how much their babies love coming. I believe Babyzone has the potential to become one of the leading early years models globally, particularly as it continues to build robust longitudinal outcomes data and scalable, externally validated metrics. I was especially struck by the Parent Confidence Index, which I see as a genuinely innovative contribution to the field."
The partnership sits within Bukhman Philanthropies' broader commitment to neonatal and maternal health — an area where the foundation supports research, hospitals, and charities working to improve outcomes for mothers and babies from the very beginning of life.