This year, we are exploring how the third sector supports good infant mental health, and what we can do to support, develop and add value to infant mental health provision.
Research shows that investing in the earliest years of life makes the biggest difference. The first 1,001 days of a baby’s life (through pregnancy and the first two years of life), is a critical time for brain development, with more influence on a person’s future than any other time.
As fund managers of the Perinatal and Infant Mental Health Fund on behalf of the Scottish Government, we’ve seen first-hand the transformational impact of the third sector who work directly with babies and families.
But where is it best to focus our support to make the biggest difference?
To help us find the answer, we set off on an infant mental health tour of Scotland!
So far, we’ve spoken with some of the country’s top infant mental health experts from the third sector to the NHS and from funders and academics. Our wide-ranging conversations have been inspiring and thought-provoking
While each person has a different perspective, everyone agreed:
When we reflected on putting babies at the heart of our work and what this would mean for a baby born in 2023 in Scotland, we asked ourselves…if this baby could talk, what do you think they would say?
“Hello, my name is Sophie and I’m five months old.
Did you know that in the first year of my life, over one million connections are being formed in my growing brain every second?
Going from my mummy’s tummy to the noisy and bright world has been a big change. The most important thing to me is relationships. My family cuddle me, play with me, talk and sing to me. I can’t talk yet so they listen to me when I tell them with my eyes, body or voice when I like or don’t like something.
From birth, I am my own person and have rights that protect me and keep me safe.
Everything in the world is new for me – I’m born ready to learn and I’m excited for what my future holds.”
Stay tuned as we keep Sophie in mind and we continue our conversations with people working across infant mental health in Scotland.
Whilst we know the earliest years matter, we also recognise there’s no single element that determines someone’s future. You can have a difficult beginning and still go on to live a happy and healthy life.
Our work on the PIMH fund is part of our strategic focus of ‘improving the life chances of children and young people’. We want to work in partnership and collaboratively with others on this collective mission and are grateful to everyone we have spoken with already.
If you’re working in infant mental health or interested in investing in the early years, we’d love to hear from you.
Some of the organisations and papers that are helping to shape our thinking are:
“[My mentor] made me believe in myself again” Over the summer, 12 tech gurus from financial firm Morgan Stanley were matched with those who work in the third sector in Scotland to embark on a six month mentoring programme through Inspiring Scotland’s Specialist Volunteer Network. Morgan Stanley is a global leader in financial services and
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The annual report provides an overview of the work undertaken to deliver on our strategic priorities and mission to improve the lives of people across Scotland. Last year Inspiring Scotland managed 16 funding programmes delivering to our strategic priorities ‘Improving Life Chances for Children and Young People’ and ‘Flourishing Lives’. We managed over £46m of
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Monday 25 November, Minister for Equalities, Kaukab Stewart marked the start of 16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence by sharing Delivering Equally Safe’s latest six month Impact Report at a visit to funded project Monklands Women’s Aid. Monklands Women’s Aid supported 331 women and 109 children and young people in the six month period through
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