On 15th January the Department for Education (DfE), in partnership with the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC), launched the Better Health Start for Life 'Little Moments Together' Campaign.

The campaign aims to share with parents the importance of brain development in the first five years of a child’s life, and the crucial role they play, with advice and tips available on the Start for Life website.

Early childhood is a crucial time for brain development, when a young, developing brain changes shape and size in response to everything it encounters. This early-stage development is relatively unknown among parents, which presents an opportunity for the campaign to break down the science in an accessible way for parents.

Did you know…. In our first five years our brain develops faster than any other time in our lives. It doubles in size in the first year and 90% of brain growth happens by the age of five! Watch the video here

Early learning and development

Right from the start, all those little moments you spend together with your child are building their brain. Every smile, cuddle, chat, and game make a huge difference, helping them learn to communicate, develop confidence, and make friends.

Why the ‘Little Moments Together’ are so important

Too many children in the UK start school developmentally months behind their peers, particularly in speech and language ability. This gap often widens over time, particularly in disadvantaged groups, with children who have poor vocabulary skills at age five being less

likely to succeed academically. They are also up to twice as likely to be unemployed in their thirties.

The Better Health Start for Life website has a wealth of information for 0-5 year olds, including activities indoors and out, feeding, speech & language development, videos, tips, routines  and much more!