DISADVANTAGED children in Little Hulton could soon be getting a better start in life.

The area will be next in line to get a new Sure Start centre to help fight child poverty if a Council bid for Government funding is approved.

The scheme, which aims to help children from birth to four-years-old, would bring up to £800,000 a year in revenue and around £1 million capital to the town.

Council wards have to fall into the poorest 20 per cent nationally to be considered for the initiative and Little Hulton is within the poorest 10 per cent.

Salford Council considered five areas but settled on Little Hulton as it was the most deprived and had a high number of children on the Child Protection Register.

In the national rankings, it is the 138th most deprived ward in the country and is ranked second inside Salford Council's boundaries --second only to Broughton.

And it also has the poorest health ranking in the city, a high number of teenage pregnancies, and the second highest ward proportion of children in care.

Little Hulton councillor Alice Smyth said: "Sure Start is wonderful news for Little Hulton. A lot of good work has already been done with SRB funding and we will be able to use this centre to build on that.

"I think it is right that it should go to Little Hulton because I know a lot of families who need this support and it will benefit a lot of children and parents."

Sure Start is a programme funded by the Department for Education and Skills which aims to work with parents-to-be and parents of children up to the age of four.

Projects aim to promote their physical, intellectual and social development so they can flourish at home and at school to break the cycle of disadvantage.

Bolton Council already runs several and a Farnworth centre is on the way while Salford Council already has two up and running.

Detailed proposals for the scheme will be submitted to the national Sure Start Unit by mid-August and the successful plans will be announced from March next year.