Research and evaluation
Research into the impact of coronavirus restrictions on babies in the UK
‘The final document is a triumph. It is clear, well structured, interesting and helpful and has been well received by key stakeholders.’
— Sally Hogg, Head of Policy and Campaigning at the Parent-Infant Foundation, and Coordinator of the First 1001 Days Movement
‘I am absolutely overwhelmed by the superb level of detail and insight that you have got in that report.’
— Rt Hon Andrea Leadsom MP
The brief
In Spring 2020, as the scale of the coronavirus pandemic and its effects in the UK were becoming clear and the nation went into lockdown, members of the First 1001 Days Movement, an alliance of over 160 charities, parliamentarians, academics and professional associations, started to observe:
significant impacts of the crisis on babies – not so much direct effects of Covid-19 itself, but wider, indirect impacts of lockdown; and
local differences in how services and systems were adapting and responding to the needs of babies and their families.
The First 1001 Days Movement wanted to gain a more in-depth understanding of the implications of the crisis on babies. In particular, they wanted to use this opportunity to explore what responses to the crisis might tell us about why babies' needs are understood, prioritised and addressed more in some places than others. Their thinking was that insights from this period could inform both the future work of their members, and national and local policy thinking.
We were commissioned by the Movement Secretariat – provided by the Parent Infant Foundation – to conduct a UK-wide review. Funding support was provided by Cattanach. The aims of the project were to:
capture the evolving picture of the impact of Covid-19 and the Spring 2020 national lockdown on babies;
explore the nature of the lockdown challenge for the local systems and services that support babies and their families; and
understand the factors which have shaped and driven local lockdown responses relating to 0-2s, and identify lessons for the future.
All services working with families during this time, including, but not limited to, health visiting, perinatal support services, social care, family support, early help and childcare came within the scope of the work.
What did we do?
We proposed a mixed methodology to capture as much information and as many perspectives as possible, taking account of the rapidly evolving picture. There were four key components.
Rapid review of the literature – key headlines and points of agreement and divergence were pulled from over 60 publications, including academic studies, policy reports, national data releases and press articles. From this we were able to develop a graphic model and accompanying text summarising the impacts on 0-2s in draft form and frame a series of the questions on system and service response to feed in the other elements of research.
Service provider survey – we designed and conducted an online snapshot survey of senior leaders of key 0-2 services across the UK. 235 service leaders responded providing a rich bank of materials to analyse. Some of the insights we gleaned here were highlighted in a blogpost on our website.
Semi-structured interviews – we conducted semi-structured interviews with ten senior decision-makers (local authority and public health directors and assistant directors) across seven local areas. Locations were selected from areas with varying levels of prior commitment to 0-2s (based on set indicators). Interviews explored what had happened during lockdown and why local changes and decisions had come about. We also interviewed two national policy experts.
Online workshops – we conducted three remote workshops with multi-professional groups, from across health and children’s services. These discussions explored themes relating to the impact of national policy decisions, the role of local leadership, local understanding of need, resourcing and capacity, collaboration and the role of innovation.
Evidence from all components were analysed thematically and combined into a single narrative, which we tested with colleagues from the Parent Infant Foundation, academics, leading professionals and charity leaders on the First 1001 Days steering group, and captured in a final report, which was published by the First 1001 Days Movement in January 2021.
What difference did we make?
The report was launched at the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Conception to Age Two. It tells the story of what happened to babies during lockdown and the services that support them, but also identifies the reasons behind that. Whilst drawing largely on the experiences of the first national lockdown, it has application for future lockdowns and for all those wanting to plan a good recovery. Some of our key findings are set out below.
Experiencing lockdown as a baby was a risk factor in its own right – hidden harms from the pandemic were significant and unevenly distributed, so those from more disadvantaged backgrounds could be considered at “double jeopardy”. We provide a framework for understanding these harms and how they inter-connect.
There is clear evidence of a “baby blind spot” in national crisis responses, where the needs of 0-2s were overlooked in policy, planning and funding. The report catalogues how this was manifested across a range of service areas and articulates what professionals believe the underlying causes to be.
The local challenge was characterised by change and uncertainty but many of those responsible for adapting and delivering frontline services were significantly energised and exceptionally motivated. In places the crisis has catalysed cooperation and innovation and removed longstanding barriers to change.
Local systems that were most likely to put in place “baby-positive” responses had strong and focused leadership, mature partnerships, dynamic understanding of need and innovative culture. In the report, we identify 10 enablers of “baby-positive” local systems under these headings and give detailed explanations of the organisational and relational factors and processes that contributed positively (and those that made it hard to be effective).
The value of human connection across local systems has been highlighted by the crisis. Across the board, local systems with a history of strong connections across agencies, between areas, across staff working at different levels, and with communities, have been best placed in their response to the crisis.
The report was widely welcomed by members of the First 1001 Days Movement, many of whom put out statements of support. Andrea Leadsom MP said the findings would inform her review for the Prime Minister on improving health outcomes in babies and young children. It has also come to the attention of the parliamentarians, including the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Fit and Healthy Childhood, and Baroness Newlove, who quoted it in House of Lords debates on the Domestic Abuse Bill in support of an amendment to include babies.
The report received a positive reception from a number of local government decision-makers, some of whom have been in contact with us for deeper engagement as they seek to plan their post-crisis response. We will be continuing to support leaders to apply the findings and frameworks to their local strategies, including delivering a webinar and action learning sets on behalf of the Local Government Association.
The report also covered in much of the sector press including Nursery World (who also ran an interview), Children and Young People Now, Municipal Journal and some national newspapers (the Guardian and Express).
What did those involved say about the work?
‘I am absolutely overwhelmed by the superb level of detail and insight that you have got in that report. That is incredibly helpful for my review.’
— Rt Hon Andrea Leadsom MP
‘I thank the First 1001 Days Movement for its fantastic report Working for Babies .... It is a common-sense report that explains that children aged nought to two have been deprived of services and forgotten.’
— Baroness Newlove, Hansard, 25 January 2021
‘The Working for Babies project was a great piece of work and I enjoyed working with Jodie and Natalie. It was really helpful to spend time scoping the project so we had a strong shared understanding of what was required, which provided a firm foundation for the work. The process of the research enabled us to feed in regularly, pull out key learnings as we went along, and ensure that the final report would meet our objectives. The final document is a triumph. It is clear, well structured, interesting and helpful and has been well received by key stakeholders. We have really appreciated Jodie’s and Natalie’s structured thinking, clear communication and hard work throughout the project, and their commitment, not just to deliver a great product, but to work with us to maximise its impact.’
— Sally Hogg, Head of Policy and Campaigning at the Parent-Infant Foundation, and Coordinator of the First 1001 Days Movement
‘We are so delighted with the report's reception – Jodie has done amazing work, as have, of course, have the Parent Infant Foundation team.’
— Sophie Flemig, Chief Executive, Cattanach
‘A really good report with some really meaty stuff from her research about the impact on babies and families from lockdown.’
— Tim Loughton MP
‘This is core reading for those involved in early years and those involved in lockdown policy.’
— Dartington Service Design Lab (via Twitter)