MSP delighted with baby box successes
Rutherglen’s MSP has hailed support for the baby box initiative in Scotland.
Around 186,000 Baby Boxes will have been delivered to families by its fourth anniversary this month, while uptake among expectant parents hit a record high of 98 per cent in 2020.
The baby box scheme now falls under the remit of Clare Haughey, in her role as children’s minister, and she was delighted at the results from an independent evaluation of the initiative, which found 97 per cent of respondents rated the box’s contents as good.
Parents stated that benefits of the box included saving them money on essential items for newborns and helping them with information on child health and development.
The Rutherglen MSP told the Refomer: “The Baby Box is part of our commitment to making sure that every child, no matter what their circumstances, has the best start in life.
“I am delighted so many parents continue to value the box and that they and their babies are benefitting from it and its contents.
“It’s encouraging to see the positive impacts of the Baby Box are felt right across all families, but particularly among first-time parents, younger parents and families on lower incomes.
“This evaluation really highlights the positive impact it is having on parents and their newborns - a fitting tribute on its fourth birthday.”
The evaluation was carried out by pollsters IPSOS MORI.
Among the findings were that 60 per cent of parents felt the inclusion of books in the baby box had encouraged them to start reading with their baby earlier, with younger, first-time and lower income parents particularly likely to say this.
Jackie Tolland, from Parent Network Scotland, said: “As a parenting organisation, we were delighted to be part of the launch of the Baby Box in 2017.
“Since then, we have heard many stories about how helpful and very much-needed the Baby Box has been to families.
“We continue to promote the Baby Box and thank the Scottish Government for keeping parents in mind at the start of their parenting journey. We appreciate all the support.”