New Parliamentary Group for Babies launched

The All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) supported by the Parent-Infant Foundation in the last parliament, has re-formed with a new name.   

The All-Party Parliamentary Group on Babies (Pregnancy to Age two) is now registered and the Foundation will continue to act as the Group’s secretariat.

The APPG on Babies (Pregnancy to Age Two) has registered more than 20 MPs and Peers as members. Several attended the first formal meeting at the end of October to support its launch (see photo). This was a formal business meeting to elect the four officers and to comply with the rules set for each APPG. The Group will be chaired by Maya Ellis, Labour MP for Ribble Valley. Vice-Chair Elsie Blundell MP even brought her one-month old baby into parliament for the meeting. 

The newly elected officers of the APPG are:

Maya Ellis MP (Labour) – Chair
Elsie Blundell MP (Labour) – Vice-Chair
Patrick Spencer MP (Conservative) – Vice Chair
Freddie van Mierlo MP (Liberal Democrat) – Vice-Chair

The Group will work across political boundaries to provide constructive advice to government on early years policy.  

During the first meeting, MPs and Peers discussed concerns over future funding of the Start for Life programme and the legacy of Sure Start.  They cited personal experiences of a ‘postcode lottery’ of maternity care and variable support for new parents. The parliamentarians agreed that babies’ needs must be central to the extension of government-subsidised childcare and plans to create nurseries in primary schools.  

Since this meeting, these newly elected officers have got straight to work writing a letter to Andrew Gwynne, Minister of State for Public Health and Prevention, calling for the Start for Life programme to have it’s funding extended beyond the end of March 2025, to be rolled out beyond the 75 areas in England that currently receive funding and to meet to discuss how to move this agenda forward.

Earlier this week (9 December) Maya Ellis MP asked an oral question during Education Questions calling on the government to extend the Start for Life programme beyond the 75 areas of England that currently receive the funding. Stephen Morgan, Minister for Early Education, agreed to meet with her to discuss this further.

The APPG’s full purpose is:  To champion the needs of vulnerable babies who need support. Recognising the first 1001 days is a crucial period of development, when adverse experiences affect future outcomes, we aim to help government make informed decisions about early years policy, grounded in evidence and the experience of families, babies and professionals. 

Photo from first official APPG meeting from left to right:

Lord Simon Russell of Liverpool, Tamora Langley Head of Policy and Communications, Parent-Infant Foundation, Leigh Ingham MP, Kirith Entwistle MP, Elsie Blundell MP, Maya Ellis MP, Freddie van Mierlo MP, Dr Kieran Mullan MP and Keith Reed Chief Executive, Parent-Infant Foundation.