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Spotlight on babies: Our approach to early years support 

Every baby deserves to feel safe, loved, and supported. To mark Infant Mental Health Awareness Week, we’re shining a light on the vital work being done across Scotland to make that a reality. 

This year’s theme, “Who is holding the baby?”, highlights the importance of nurturing relationships and the need for services to support families during the earliest stages of life. 

Babies are born with a fundamental need to feel safe, secure, and emotionally connected. Their mental health is shaped by the relationships and environments around them. When parents and carers are supported to respond sensitively to their baby’s needs, it helps build the neural pathways that support emotional regulation and resilience throughout life. 

At Inspiring Scotland, we believe that every baby deserves the best possible start in life. The earliest years are a critical window for development, and the right support during this time can have a lifelong impact.  

Through the Perinatal and Infant Mental Health (PIMH) Fund and Thrive Outdoors, we fund charities and work alongside partners across Scotland to ensure babies and their families receive the care, connection, and opportunities they need to thrive. 

The Perinatal and Infant Mental Health Fund supports charities that work with families during the perinatal period – from pregnancy through the first year of a baby’s life. This is a time of immense change, and for many, it can also be a time of vulnerability for both babies and parents. We know that support is sometimes hard to find, so we created a directory of third sector perinatal and infant mental health services in Scotland, accessible to all those who need it.  

The organisations we support provide vital services such as counselling and peer support, helping to build strong, nurturing relationships that are key to healthy development. By funding these services, we are helping to reduce isolation, improve mental health outcomes, and strengthen the bond between parents and their babies – laying the foundation for a brighter future. 

Alongside the importance of supporting good mental health, we know that babies benefit enormously from time spent outdoors. We have championed outdoors play and learning through the Thrive Outdoors programme, recognising that nature offers rich experiences that support babies’ physical, emotional, and cognitive development. 

We’re excited to share that the Thrive team is launching a new resource for practitioners working with babies’ parents, families, and carers in outdoor settings. Starting Out to Play: Discovering nature with babies and young children offers practical guidance, evidence-based insights, and inspiring ideas to help early years practitioners confidently support babies’ wellbeing through nature-based experiences. 

Beyond funding – fostering collaboration and knowledge sharing 

While funding is essential, we know that real change happens when organisations are supported holistically and connected. That’s why we offer our funded charities and the wider sector more than just financial support. 

We facilitate collaboration between funded partners, creating opportunities for shared learning and cooperation. We host events, share data and case studies on best practices, publish insights, and foster a community where organisations can learn from one another and grow stronger together. Our team also provides tailored support to help charities build capacity, improve outcomes, and access the help of our Specialist Volunteer Network. 

We work in this space, but we also make it easier for others to do the same. Our resources – such as the new Starting Out to Play guidance document – are available to all practitioners, not just our funded charities. We also maintain an online directory of third sector perinatal and infant mental health services in Scotland, signposting the work of others and directing families and professionals to the support they need. 

As we continue to support babies and their families through the PIMH and Thrive funds, we remain committed to a holistic approach – one that values mental health, outdoor experiences, and the power of collaboration. Together with our partners, we are building a Scotland where every baby can grow up healthy, happy, and connected.