RESEARCHERS from Bradford are playing a key role in inspiring new guidance to protect and enhance children’s health and wellbeing all over the world.
The landmark study, Born in Bradford (BiB), has already worked with respected medical journal The Lancet to shape best practice for a child’s first 1,000 days.
Recommended policies focused on overall health, nutrition, security and safety, responsive care-giving and learning, in children from birth to two years old.
But new guidance released today (November 19) on the back of fresh Lancet research concentrates on recommendations for “the next 1,000 days”, covering children aged from two to five – and again the BiB study has played a part.
World leaders will be encouraged to back investment in education and early childhood care, including adequately paid and trained teachers, reasonable teacher-student ratios, child-centred play, evidence-based curricula and warm, stimulating, and responsive classroom interactions.
The BiB study – one of the largest of its kind in the world – has not only helped to shape these recommendations for global best practice. It is also helping to improve children’s health and life chances locally by influencing policy-making relevant to the welfare of young people.
The Lancet researchers say their new data suggests just short of 182 million youngsters from low-income and middle-income countries – almost 75% of all children aged between two and three around the world – don’t currently benefit from “nurturing care”.
The latest report also warns world leaders that a lack of contact with health and education services puts children’s early years’ development at significant risk.
And those messages chime particularly in Bradford which this year has leapfrogged centres like London and Cambridge for the first time in recruiting the highest number of research participants.
Director of Child Health Research at the Bradford Institute for Health Research, Dr Sunil Bhopal, welcomed these new recommendations for children aged 2 to 5. He added that the city should be proud of its progress as well as its role in identifying best practice – but there is no room for complacency.
“Britain may not be a low- or middle-income nation but a separata reports – such as the Child of the North series we have contributed to – indicates the lack of access to good and timely care for children could be putting their futures at risk,” he said.
“Thanks to Born in Bradford, and Bradford’s growing reputation as a City of Research, we’re already some way down the road when it comes to identifying the issues – but that doesn’t mean we’ve fixed them. Change can take time.
“If we have ways to shine a spotlight on the city’s problems and to track our progress in dealing with them we have a chance to make everyone’s lives that bit better.
“The Lancet recommendations for both the first and next 1,000 days are another shoulder to the wheel which could make the whole process that much easier.”
The most recent Lancet study points out providing one-year early childhood care and education for all children would cost on average less than 0.15% of low-income and middle-income countries’ current gross domestic product.
However, the potential benefits of providing these programmes are on average eight to 19 times larger than the cost of implementing them.
The Lancet report authors also call for wider investment to ensure children in “the next 1,000 days” (aged 2 to 5) receive:
- Continuity of parenting and caregiver support
- Attention to adequate nutrition
- Access to healthcare
- Universal developmental screenings followed by the necessary referral and support services
- Provision of financial support to the most vulnerable
- Engagement and support for caregivers by all sectors to provide safe and nurturing environments for children in their homes and communities
BiB itself follows 60,000 Bradfordians and has been using its findings to help to identify new and practical ways to work with both families and medical staff to improve the city’s health and well-being.
Examples include the Better Start Bradford (BSB) initiative which provides over 20 projects for pregnant mums or families with children aged up to three, designed to improve the youngsters’ emotional and social development, communication, language and nutrition.