Call for children's centres to focus on attachment

The educational foundation makes the recommendation in its Baby Bonds report, which found that four out of ten babies globally do not develop strong emotional bonds with their parents.

Its research also found that a quarter of children reported avoiding their parents when upset because they have ignored them in the past, and 15 per cent resisted their parents because they cause them distress.

The report welcomes government-backed parenting support programmes, such as the Family Nurse Partnership and Troubled Families initiative, but concludes intervention needs to happen at an earlier stage in order to prevent children experiencing long-term effects of poor parenting.

It says children centres should play a key role in delivering parenting courses when their children are six months old or younger. These should focus on parents’ behaviour and involve fathers.

Centres should also come together with antenatal and postnatal NHS services, and health visitors, to offer a comprehensive package of support. They should engage and refer those in need of additional help to early intervention and troubled families programmes at birth, if not during the pregnancy.

Sutton Trust director of research Conor Ryan said: “This report clearly identifies the fundamental role secure attachment could have in narrowing that school readiness gap and improving children’s life chances.”

Research shows that lack of attachment between parent and baby can lead to problems in later life, such as poor school attainment and behavioural issues.

The report found boys growing up in poverty and with strong bonds with their parents are two and a half times less likely to have behavioural problems at school.

Anne Longfield, chief executive of the charity 4Children, agreed that children’s centres and health visitors are ideally placed to improve bonds between parents and their babies.

She said: “The fact that most health visitors are now working closely with their local centres reflects this and for most this is a central part of their role.??“We work closely with health visitors and parents are encouraged to discuss any concerns they have with bonding with their child."

The report's findings chime closely with the views of Andrea Leadsom MP, the chair of the all-party parliamentary group on Sure Start, who believes children's centres should become a conception to age two-focused service.