It takes a village to raise a child

It is more than 20 years since Hillary Rodham Clinton popularised this saying, said to have originated in Africa, that to raise a child the involvement of the whole community (or whole society) is important.  At that time, academic books proliferated about the importance of support in the local area for parents, some of which would come not from professionals but from other parents, and grandparents.  Less local support and connection was linked, especially in urban areas, to poor outcomes such as child abuse and neglect. The focus on communities was part of the backdrop for a number of UK policy initiatives called ‘area based’, one of which was Sure Start Local Programmes.  The centres that emerged from that policy were based on the idea of integrated nursery centres, such as the Coram Family Centre in Camden, London, and the Penn Green Centre for Children and Families in Corby, Northampton (currently under threat of closure).  In addition to a range of services for children and parents, there was a welcoming environment where parents could meet each other, have a chat, and potentially talk about any aspect of parenting or their child’s development that they were concerned about.  A range of professionals were available, but also their peers, local parents who had stayed for a cup of coffee.  At the Coram Family Centre in the 1980s, they could even do their laundry there. At the current time, that saying has been revisited by, for example the Institute of Health Visitors (Conception to Age 2 APPG, Feb 28th, 2023).  Many health visitors, whose numbers are dropping, report being overstretched and consider that families are not able to access the support they need.  Research by UNICEF-UK mirrors this, finding that parents are unsure about who to turn to for support and they are worried about child development. Research conducted by the Royal Foundation reported that many parents of young children feel judged, and that 1 in 5 parents report knowing little or nothing about socio-emotional development of infants and young children (https://royalfoundation.com/early-childhood/).  Virtual support and information can be found on many websites and in parental forums.  But this cannot replace a quiet chat with a local parent, who may be able to share experiences that are helpful, or who may be able to explain where to go for more support. Rather than being judged, anxieties can be shared and alleviated. National and local policy agendas should be directed to funding and increasing the number of integrated centres, where there are opportunities and encouragement for babies and toddlers to learn through play, support for parents is offered, both formal and informal, and, ideally, also with the presence of health professionals and particularly health visitors. This is the case in some local authorities (for an example see https://www.st-stephens-nurserychildrenscentre.org.uk/Children-s-Centre/).  A centre like this should be in every local community.