New Welsh Mental Health and Wellbeing Strategy highlights parent-infant relationships

Welsh Government have published a new 10-year strategy for mental health and wellbeing, along with a delivery plan for the next three years.

The new strategy aims to join up and align health and social care services across Wales, and we welcome its recognition of the importance of early relationships between babies and their parents or carers.

It highlights the importance of the first 1000 days, and babies’ and children’s developmental period, noting that risks may develop during this time as a result of attachment and bonding issues.

The new strategy recognises that, ‘it is vital that effective interventions are offered at this young age to mitigate future emotional challenges and to support a happy and healthy childhood.’ And that this means an approach that is trauma-informed, person-centred and preventative.

One of the stories accompanying the new strategy is of the relationship between a dad (Dan) and his son (Elijah), and it is encouraging to see that18-month old Elijah’s story is told from the baby’s perspective.

A section on infant mental health notes that, ‘Early relationships are fundamental to infant mental health and create the foundations for positive development throughout childhood and adolescence.’ 

Welsh Government say they will, ‘Provide more learning opportunities on attachment and parenting, and specialist roles that can share parent-infant relationship knowledge and skills, including consultant health visitor and midwifery roles.’  Then they plan to ‘strengthen the universal and targeted offer to parents.’   The accompanying 3-year Delivery Plan commits to, ‘Develop an agreed approach to parent-infant relationships, by the end of year one.’

Following our meeting with Ministers earlier in the year, we continue to follow this policy development closely, and will continue to seek government support for the recommendations set out in our Golden Thread report.