Start for life including perinatal mental health

This section explores the science behind the first 1001 days from conception to age two—when rapid brain development creates both opportunity and vulnerability—and examines how parental mental health during pregnancy and early parenthood profoundly shapes child outcomes.

Essential resources supporting families and practitioners through pregnancy, birth, and the first two years—when foundations for lifelong mental health and development are built.

Babies have a voice – that is, they have a right to have their views taken seriously in decisions affecting their lives. This voice is best interpreted through warm relationships with those who know them well. This resource covers the importance of listening to babies’ views to understand their experiences and give them the best start in life.

The Isle of Wight Family Hubs enhanced antenatal support by integrating maternity services with Family Hub programmes, notably the evidence-based “Welcome to the World.” This initiative improved early engagement, increased parental confidence, and strengthened pathways to postnatal services. Midwives refer families via Badgernet at 16 weeks, boosting access to workshops and support. Data shows rising participation and improved parental wellbeing, especially among underrepresented group

We want every family to access the support they need to achieve the best start in life for their babies. For perinatal mental health and parent-infant relationship support, this means access to universal services to help spot and respond to issues before they develop into more complex problems.

Despite not having received Family Hubs and Start for Life programme funding, Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea (RBKC) and Westminster City Council wanted to strengthen the delivery of their Start for Life Offer through increased integration and formalisation of services.

Historically, breastfeeding rates in Coventry have been below the national average. The infant feeding team wanted to harness the opportunity presented by the Family Hubs and Start for Life programme to increase engagement with their infant feeding services and encourage more mothers to breastfeed.

We know that all too often families are left to work out for themselves not only what help they need, but also where to find it. Northumberland’s review discovered that there was no centralised source of information available to parents or carers about their child's development during pregnancy and until the age of two. Upon joining the Family Hub and Start for Life programme, Northumberland set about creating a one-stop shop so that every parent and carer can access the support they need when they need it.