Roderic O'Gorman (Dublin West, Green Party)
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Baby Boxes for newborns are to be piloted under First 5 A Whole-of -Government Strategy for Babies, Young Children and their Families 2019-2028. 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. The concept of Baby Boxes originates in Finland (and has been implemented in a number of other countries) and 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.

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.

Owing to COVID-19, work on the pilot project has been delayed. However, a Working Group will be established in the coming weeks to lead this development. An initial task of this Group will be to finalise the scope of this project and agree a detailed project plan. Key initial considerations will include the identification of the pilot geographic area, agreement on the optimal timing for (pre- or post- natal), and channel of, distribution of the baby box and the likely contents.  A researcher will be appointed to oversee focus groups and/or consultations with new and expectant parents to inform the identification of items for inclusion.

Following this initial scoping phase, which should conclude by end Q1 2021, the Working Group will oversee a competitive procurement process to appoint suitable tenderers to a) develop and distribute the baby boxes and b) undertake a full evaluation of the pilot. Given the likely value of these contracts, the procurement process will take several months. It is therefore envisaged that distribution of the baby boxes will commence in end Q3 2021 / early Q4 2021.