Seanad debates

Tuesday, 19 February 2019

Nithe i dtosach suíonna - Commencement Matters

Early Years Sector

2:30 pm

Photo of Neale RichmondNeale Richmond (Fine Gael)
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I am delighted to welcome the Minister of State at the Department of Housing, Planning and Local Government, Deputy Phelan, to the House. I appreciate his taking this Commencement matter on behalf of the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs, Deputy Zappone.

As every parent knows, the early years of a child's life are of great importance in ensuring the child reaches his or her full potential. Parents are also aware of the fear, panic and apprehension that even the best prepared new parents may experience on the birth of their first or subsequent children. One way of helping parents through this very difficult process is by assisting them with the essentials they will need for the crucial first weeks and months of parenthood. A baby box is a box full of the supplies new parents need to give their child the best start in life, including clothes, books, blankets, thermometers, towels and toys. The box also contains a mattress and can double as a cot for the infant. Baby boxes have been distributed in Finland and many other Scandinavian countries since the 1930s. More relevant to this country, they have been distributed in Scotland since 2017. As parents may choose to have their child sleep in the box, it is obviously important that all necessary safety tests be carried out before the boxes are provided to the public. Baby boxes have been distributed in counties Wexford, Limerick and Tipperary under a pilot scheme which has been a significant success. It is a clear indication of the appetite among new parents for the baby box.

In the past week or so, I met the Scottish Minister for Children and Young People, Ms Maree Todd, in Edinburgh to discuss the success of baby box initiative there. As of December 2018, 68,513 Scottish parents had received a baby box, with an estimated take-up rate of more than 85% of new parents. More than 60% of those Scottish parents used or intended to use the box as a crib.

As well as supporting new parents, the baby box gives all children a fair start in life by providing them with essential goods. As the box doubles as a crib, it ensures that babies have a safe place to sleep. In 2018, the Minister, Deputy Zappone, announced her intention to bring baby boxes to all Irish parents. That intention must be made a reality. When will the baby box scheme be rolled out across the country? If it is not envisaged that it will take place in the very near future, I plead with the Minister of State to do everything in his power to ensure it is done as soon as possible.

Photo of John Paul PhelanJohn Paul Phelan (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fine Gael)
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I thank the Senator for his question. The Minister for Children and Youth Affairs, Deputy Zappone, has asked me to take this Commencement matter because she is attending the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Children and Youth Affairs this afternoon and is, therefore, unable to be present in the House.I bow to Senator Richmond's greater knowledge of parenting and I hope that young Master Luke is-----

Photo of Paul CoghlanPaul Coghlan (Fine Gael)
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The Minister of State will get there.

Photo of John Paul PhelanJohn Paul Phelan (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fine Gael)
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-----better having been ill recently. Baby boxes for newborns are to be trialled in a pilot under First 5, the recently published whole-of-Government strategy for babies, young children and their families. Piloting baby boxes is just one initiative which is part of a wide-ranging strategy addressing various aspects of the lives of children from birth to age five, including supports for parents to balance working and caring, developments in early learning and care and health initiatives. The gift of the baby box is intended as a welcome from the State for a new arrival to a family and an acknowledgement of this very significant moment for parents. The universal distribution of baby boxes also reflects an important equality principle that each child is given something of equal value at the start of their life.

As the Senator outlined, the concept originates in Finland and has been implemented in a number of other countries. It consists of a package of items to assist with the transition to parenthood. The pilot will undertake research and consultation to determine items for inclusion in the pack and these may include safety items, baby clothes and toys to support early development and books to foster a love of reading from infancy. The distribution of a baby box also offers the opportunity to communicate important child development and safety messages to parents and is an early opportunity to link families in with support services if they are required. This is consistent with the principle of progressive universalism whereby all families receive something universally, but where there are additional needs, extra supports are provided. Key objectives with the baby box and linked communications will include support for parent infant bonding, information on baby development and early learning, advice and support for breastfeeding and promotion of infant health and safety. At this point, it has not yet been determined whether the box will be designed for babies to sleep in. In other countries, as the Senator outlined, it can act as a crib for the first six months of a child’s life. The logistical issues with this and whether such a feature would be of value to parents will be questions for the scoping phase. Other options for design will also be considered.

Baby boxes will be piloted in parallel with book bags to support early literacy and the home learning environment. Book bags are packs with books for children and other resources to support reading and learning. It is intended that book bags would be made available free of charge to families with young children at key points in a child’s life such as infancy, the transition to preschool and the transition to primary school. The pilot of baby boxes and book bags will also address questions of how to facilitate distribution of these resources and the local service provision infrastructure that will be required to be configured to support this.

Photo of Neale RichmondNeale Richmond (Fine Gael)
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I thank the Minister of State for his reply and I agree with much of what he said about this issue, which I am very passionate about. Every new parent should be given the same basic start and opportunity for the new life they are bringing into the world. I am not necessarily the best parent. I had many privileges when I had the opportunity to help, support and pretend to pay attention to all the great work my wife did 16 months ago. Many people in this country are not in the same position and this scheme provides the Government with an opportunity to assist them. I note the report and the pilot scheme but I appeal to the Minister, Deputy Zappone, to speak with her counterparts in Finland, other Scandinavian countries and, in particular, Scotland, which is comparable to Ireland. The scheme in Scotland has been highly successful. We should definitely consider having the box as a crib. Concerns raised in Scotland have been addressed so let us use Scotland's wisdom and experience to make our scheme the best possible. The great thing about these boxes is that not only do the items contained within give people a great start but they can provide great guidance on swaddling or reusable nappies, which I will not pretend I use. We need to start implementing this and encouraging people that this can be done so that everyone has the same first start.

Photo of John Paul PhelanJohn Paul Phelan (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fine Gael)
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Dormant accounts funding has been secured for the development of the pilots in both baby boxes and book bags between 2019 and 2021. That is the direct answer to the Senator's question. If the pilots are successful, as we hope they will be, and once the consultation on what should be included has taken place, it is envisaged the schemes will be introduced.

Photo of Paul CoghlanPaul Coghlan (Fine Gael)
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I thank the Minister of State and the Senator.