Supporting infants, children and young people

All babies have different ways of showing how they feel. Signs they may be finding things hard include:

• Trouble sleeping or feeding
• Seeming very unsettled, worried, or tearful
• Avoiding cuddles or eye contact
• Finding it hard to connect with you or other close family members

Bonding during pregnancy 

Your bond with your baby can start before birth. Talking, singing, or gently stroking your bump helps your baby get to know you and feel safe.

Build a strong early bond 

From the very start, your baby learns about the world through you. When you smile, cuddle, talk, or respond to their cries, you show them they are loved and safe. Over time, this trust becomes their secure base — giving them the confidence to explore, play, and learn, knowing you’ll be there when they need comfort.

Make feeding time special 

Feeding isn’t just about food — it’s a time to connect.

• Breastfeeding can help strengthen your bond, support your baby’s development, and benefit your own health.
• Bottle-feeding can also build closeness when you hold your baby close, make gentle eye contact, and talk softly during feeds.

Involving fathers/partners

When fathers or partners spend time talking, playing, and caring for the baby, it can boost learning, language skills, and emotional health — and helps the whole family feel closer.

When my parent talks or sings to me, I hear their voice and start to know it. I feel safe and close to them, even though I’m still inside

When my parent gently strokes their bump, I feel the slow, warm pressure in my safe space. Sometimes I move back to let them know I’m here. This makes me feel connected and cared for.

I hear the world outside - voices, music, laughter. When my parent rests, I feel calm too. I float in the warm water, peaceful and ready to meet them.

When I cry, my grown-up holds me skin-to-skin. When my parent feeds me, whether with breast or bottle, they hold me close and look into my eyes. I feel warm, safe, and loved. The gentle sound of their voice helps me know I belong with them.

When I’m feeling calm and alert, I open my mouth wide, my grown-up notices and does the same with their mouth. I smile at them and they smile back. 

This helps me to feel connected and to develop a sense of myself.

Getting my nappy changed and cutlery clanging in a drawer can make me cry. I also cry when I’m feeling hungry, uncomfortable or poorly.

When I cry, I’m soothed and comforted quite quickly by the grown-up around me who can help me to feel calmer and safer.

I am curious about the world around me. I enjoy picking up or touching things that interest me. I most like chewing on my toys and find it funny when my dog wags his tail.

I seek out connections and feel good when I experience care and love from the grown-up through eye contact, cuddles and smiles. Knowing that I have the support of those close to me helps me gain a sense of security and confidence to explore my world in the way I want to. 

When I am taken to my parent & toddler group, I crawl back to my caregiver if there is something I’m not sure about. After a quick cuddle, I’m ready to go again.

I know the grown-ups around me love me because they smile and laugh at the things I do, they give me hugs, and lots of encouragement when I’m trying new things. I feel happy, safe and relaxed when I’m home with my family.

I can get frustrated when I have to do something I don’t want to. Today I cried and lay down on the ground because I didn’t want to walk home from the park.

My grown-up understood that I was tired and sad to be leaving the swings. They gave me a cuddle, told me I’d done a great job walking so far, and reminded me we could come back to the park tomorrow.

This helped me feel calmer, I stopped crying, continued walking for a little while, and then asked to be carried the rest of the way.

I feel capable of trying new things, even when they’re tricky. I used to push and hit when I got cross, but now I can breathe deeply and keep going.

With the encouragement of the grown-ups around me, I know I can try, try, try again.

Regularly ask them how they are, encourage them to speak about their feelings and stay in the moment during each conversation and listen. 

It is important to respect a child or young person's boundaries and space if they aren't ready to talk about how they feel. Be patient and let them know you are there to listen whenever they are ready to talk.

Staying involved in your child's life, finding out what they are interested in and what matters to them builds a connection and helps you spot changes in their wellbeing or mental health early.

This could include being there through challenging behaviour and feelings, helping them understand their behaviour and feelings, and helping them find solutions. It could also involve helping them to consider how to respond to the social challenges they are facing.

Having good routines during childhood and adolescence can help protect mental health and wellbeing. This includes routine in relation to sleep, exercise and eating a balanced diet.

Encouraging and helping children and young people to build the Take 5 steps to wellbeing into their daily life can help boost their mental health and wellbeing. 

The Take 5 steps to wellbeing are:

• Connect
• Keep learning
• Be active
• Take notice
• Give