In an effort to protect vulnerable infants born into difficult situations, the province of Alberta has created a Welcome to Parenting initiative to ensure vulnerable parents have access to information and supplies.

“We know that more than a quarter of Alberta students start school without the skills that they need to be successful in school over the long term,” said Karen Benzies, professor in the Faculty of Nursing at the University of Calgary.  “The early brain science research tells us that the most critical periods in terms of a child’s development are early on. If we start providing support, particularly for vulnerable families, from pregnancy and through that transition to early parenting, our chances of improving outcomes, when those children reach school, are much greater.”

The ‘baby baskets’ are set to include:

  • Parenting information
  • Children’s books
  • Toys
  • Blankets

The supplies are designed to encourage regular interaction between parents and their children.

“There’s a lot of children who really don’t start Kindergarten with the type of skills and developmental tools that they need,” said Manmeet Bhullar, Minister of Alberta Human Services. “We need to do more work in the early childhood development area. This is a project that will allow us to work with vulnerable parents with vulnerable children and help them build stronger bonds with their children and really help them build stronger bonds with their children and help them build the skills and tools necessary to support a child in those early, critical years.”

The two year project will support at-risk babies and their parents in:

  • Calgary
  • Edmonton
  • Grande Prairie
  • Coaldale

The four communities were selected on the basis of their high birth rates and the fact Parent Link Centres are already in place in these areas.

The province has provided a $500,000 funding grant for the initial two years of the project. During the first 24 months, the program will be assessed and, if successful, the province hopes to expand the initiative to support more children and parents.