As part of the ENRICH research programme, the Parent and Baby/Up to 2 programme explores some of the key issues which are important to parents during early infancy including: parent and infant health and well-being, as well as  support available to parents and how these impact on parenting experiences, and parent perceptions of the parenting role and their infant’s development.

As part of this research, data was collected from parents at baseline, when infants were aged approximately 2 months, and at follow-up, when infants were approximately 8 months old.

Key findings:

 

  • Between baseline and the 8 month follow-up analysis, it was found that parents who received the Parent and Baby/Up to 2 programme showed a significant increase in parenting confidence, perceived quality of attachment with their baby, and on observed cognitive stimulation of the child in the home e.g. reading.
  • Within this group of parents, the numbers who reported regularly reading to their infants ( more than 3 times per week) increased significantly from 29% at baseline to 65% at follow-up.
  • Parents who received services as usual also demonstrated significant increases in cognitive stimulation in the home, as well as emotional support.
  • Parent-reported infant scores in the area of communication, fine motor skills, problem solving, and personal and social development showed improvement between baseline and follow-up for both groups but at follow-up, infants receiving services as usual were faring better on these measures.
  • Gross-motor development scores decreased over time for both groups and there were no significant differences at follow-up between the two groups on measures of parenting attitudes, parent well-being or the influence of the home environment.

At this stage of the research, there is tentative evidence to suggest that the Parent and Baby/Up to 2 programme can benefit parents by promoting an increased sense of efficacy and helping to further improve the perceived parent-infant relationship.

For more detailed information on this research, please click on the following: 8 month follow-up report