We are recruiting three additional practitioners to deliver For Babyâs Sake in the well-established Hertfordshire
team, which we are pleased to be expanding to cover the whole County. The additional posts will mostly cover
the west of the County.
We are recruiting three additional practitioners to deliver For Babyâs Sake in the well-established Hertfordshire
team, which we are pleased to be expanding to cover the whole County. The additional posts will mostly cover
the west of the County.
The For Baby’s Sake Trust is one of over 60 First 1001 Days member organisations who have today jointly written to the new Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, Sajid Javid, asking him to address the impacts of the pandemic on babies and their families, and to take longer-term action to ensure all our children have the best start in life.
The pandemic has been difficult for many families, with impacts on a range of factors that significantly contribute to child development, including domestic abuse. The letter points out that more than ÂĢ3bn has been spent on mitigating the impact of the pandemic on older children, but nothing on those under two.
The letter demands urgent action to ensure that babiesâ health, wellbeing and safety is prioritised and that Government acts on its own commitment to âensuring that children have the best start in lifeâ.
It also describes three things that the Secretary of State should prioritise to make a significant difference:
The letter has been signed by 64 charities and supporter organisations including the Parent-Infant Foundation, NSPCC, NCT, Action for Children and Home-Start UK.
Read the letter in full here.
The For Babyâs Sake Trust is releasing a new animated film, âThe Impactâ, where mothers and fathers tell their stories, in their own voices, of how For Babyâs Sake has empowered them to break cycles of domestic abuse and create a better future for themselves and their baby.
(You can watch the film here.)
The film is being released to coincide with two major international conferences which feature the learning from For Babyâs Sake, as the first known programme globally to work with both parents, from pregnancy until the babyâs second birthday, where there is domestic abuse.
The For Babyâs Sake Symposium, taking place within the World Association of Infant Mental Health Congress (WAIMH 20201, Brisbane, Australia and online, 22-26 June) is the major event on domestic abuse within the WAIMH2021 online programme.
For this WAIMH2021 symposium, The For Babyâs Sake Trustâs senior leadership team is joined by Dr Kylee Trevillion and Dr Jill Domoney from Kingâs College London, who led the evaluation of For Babyâs Sake, and Australiaâs leading experts on infant mental health and domestic abuse, Dr Wendy Bunston and Kathy Eyre.
The Virtual Trauma Recovery Summit (Titanic Belfast and online, 21-23 June) brings together the worldâs leading experts on trauma and trauma recovery, including Bessel van der Kolk and Gabor Mate. The For Babyâs Sake Trust is honoured to have been invited to present an online workshop at the Summit.
At the Trauma Recovery Summit, Amanda McIntyre, CEO and Judith Rees, Operational Director, share the learning from how For Babyâs Sake integrates trauma-informed approaches to breaking cycles of domestic abuse and childhood trauma with attachment-focused parenting interventions, notably Video Interaction Guidance.
Their workshop at the Summit incorporates the premiere showing of seven new films, produced by BAAFTA award-winning film director, Emma Lazenby and the ForMed films team. In each of the first six films, parents describe a particular dimension of For Babyâs Sake. In the last film, âThe Impact,â parents share some overall feelings about the difference that For Babyâs Sake has made to them and their baby. As a preview, The For Babyâs Sake Trust has put this last film, âThe Impactâ, on general release, on its website and youtube channel.
Judith Rees, Director of Operations at The For Babyâs Sake Trust, said,
âTo understand how For Baby’s Sake works and the impact for parents and their babies, listen to the mothers and fathers in our new animated film. We are grateful to them for telling their stories and proud of what they are achieving.
âWe are thrilled to share the learning from For Babyâs Sake with the World Association of Infant Mental Health and at the prestigious Trauma Recovery Summit. It is especially meaningful that the parents who work with us can speak directly to these audiences, in their own voices, through our powerful new films and recordings.â
We are urging Parliament to address the âbaby blind spotâ in the Domestic Abuse Bill and Statutory Guidance. A letter to Government (read here) signed by 70 experts, professional bodies and public and voluntary sector organisations makes the case.
The letter, coordinated by The For Babyâs Sake Trust, the Institute of Health Visiting, the First 1001 Days Movement, calls on Government and Parliament to strengthen the legislation and guidance to meet the early development and safeguarding needs of babies and empower their parents to break the cycle.
We are urging Parliament to accept amendments tabled by Baroness Stroud and co-signed by Baroness Armstrong, Baroness Finlay and Lord Mackay, demonstrating cross-party support.
The first 1001 days until a babyâs second birthday is a period of uniquely rapid development, when babies are particularly susceptible to their environment. Domestic abuse during this time is harmful and can affect parentsâ ability to give their baby the best start. 30% of domestic abuse starts in pregnancy.
Amendments are essential to the Domestic Abuse Bill and Statutory Guidance to recognise the impact of domestic abuse on babies, including exposure in utero, and to meet the needs of babies and parents during the first 1001 days before babies reach age two.
Unless the legislation is explicit and intentional, the needs of babies and their parents will be overlooked.
Government and Parliament have a once in a generation opportunity to make the Domestic Abuse Act and Statutory Guidance work for babies and their parents. We urge them to seize it.
