Positive Relationships: Let's talk about ... Working with babies

- Q: What differences are there in working with babies compared with older children?

'From my perspective, working with babies is probably the most challenging age group. In our baby room we can take up to 22 babies under Ofsted regulations, but we are trying to keep that to just 15. We have to maintain the 1:3 ratios due to financial considerations as well. Ideally babies would need a 1:1 ratio. This is especially true if a baby is ill or teething, when you have to give them lots of attention as well as coping with looking after the others.'

'I do feel that you need to have considerable childcare experience or life experience to work well in the baby room. Lots of younger, less experienced staff do come in and then common sense is very important, as is having a strong leader and role models. They often think that if a baby is not crying then everything is fine, and do not realise how important singing, eye contact, passing things and showing things is. It's all about talking and smiling - babies learn through turn-taking and conversations, in concentrated baby babbling through experienced practitioners. But it can be really hard to get that message across to both staff and parents.'

'The routine times of the day such as feeding and nappy changing are very important times, when the keyworker has the chance to be close and intimate to the baby. Eye contact is so important, and at these times practitioners have the chance to play people games like Peekaboo and This Little Piggy. The ideal is for each child to have quality one-on-one time with their key worker.'

'When working in a busy setting with 15 to 18 babies, doing nappies or bottle-feeding, you have to keep an eye on everyone at the same time. It's difficult to do without losing that quality of interaction. So often practitioners are busy focusing on the practical task rather than making the most of those everyday opportunities to further a baby's development. It can be managed with a 1:3 ratio but you have to be skilled and experienced at your job - and very organised. You must have a good team and a good leader. Everyone has different skills and it helps to work with that, like making sure the staff are zoned around the room.'

'Parents often prefer a mix of older staff with life experience and younger staff in the baby room, so that's what we try to aim for. The number of babies has increased in recent years. We've had quite a few start at six weeks old.'

- Q: How would you say attitudes to working with babies have changed and why is that?

'Within the staff teams here there is recognition that the earlier you are able to influence and aid a child's development, the better. Years ago, there was a perception to some degree among both staff and parents that essentially we were babysitting, and that has definitely changed. I would put a lot of that down to the EYFS and things like the Children's Centre programme. The introduction of the EYFS has made early developmental milestones much clearer. Now practitioners know what they should be seeing as a baby develops and it means we can measure the impact of our services better as well.'

'With very young children five or ten years back, the truth be told, we would naturally set things up the same week after week. But now every session is planned out ahead with objectives even for the youngest babies. The EYFS has also taught us that even as babies, each child is unique and has individual requirements. I think we are much more aware of the opportunities we have to positively influence babies, and because of the structure we have something to work to.'

'Parents are seeing that too, and know what we are trying to do. One parent group we run is Musical Minis. It incorporates music and dance and is fascinating to watch. The parents understand that it's about improving their child's communication.'

'When we implemented the EYFS initially there was a bit of defensiveness. Some of the established staff felt it might be a criticism of how they'd been doing things, and the guidelines were forever changing. But the EYFS has been a breath of fresh air. It makes you pick up on things like babies' development and what achieves this. It gives you more flexibility than Birth to Three.'

'Our staff are definitely aware of early brain development. They do lots of training, which is so important to keep things fresh and gain new ideas. I think if you're working in the same room day after day you can get a bit complacent. Twenty years ago it was just about caring for the children and keeping them happy, but now it's a lot more about education and training is key to keeping them inspired.'

- Q: How would you further improve the quality of provision for babies?

'The bottom line is that everybody needs to have good training. We believe it is very important that everyone who comes into childcare has specific training in how to work with babies and how babies learn. When I first went to work in a nursery I had a high level of qualification but had actual placement experience only with older age groups.'

'Even some of the staff with NVQ Levels 2 and 3 are not aware of some things, like how important it is that the babies are touching things, putting things in their mouths, and experiencing different textures, because babies learn through all their senses. Activities like malleable play and sensory play, rather than fancy one-dimensional toys, are essential.'

'Heuristic play using everyday objects such as empty cardboard boxes, Sellotape tubes, corks and open-ended resources is perfect for babies' development. These resources can be used in a multitude of ways that would be different from the sort of games you might prepare for older children. They would use the materials in a completely different way. Practitioners learn how important those kind of experiences are to babies in training and through experience.'

'Local authorities are under pressure in terms of funding, but I am in a position where I can prioritise low numbers in the baby room and say we will have a maximum of ten babies with up to five members of staff. I doubt a fee-paying nursery would be able to do this, however.'

'I don't feel that our head office has sent down any specific messages about increasing the numbers of experienced staff in the baby room. I would think that putting more experienced staff in with the under-twos would be at the manager's discretion. Within our setting, it's about management providing positive role models and structured support with training. Many settings probably cannot afford to do so much training, so we're lucky. It all comes down to what nurseries can afford.'

'Becoming involved in programmes and initiatives is also a wonderful way to spread good practice and innovative thinking. We are part of Every Child A Talker, a Government initiative that is trying to raise speech and language development before children start school.'

AN EXPERT'S VIEW

Early years consultant Dr Cath Arnold

I must begin by saying I am happy to give my personal views but in no way consider myself an 'expert' in working with babies. All I bring to bear are my experiences of being a parent and grandparent, observations of other people with babies and reading some of the current research into child development.

Many of the comments from practitioners resonate with my views - for example, key working, eye contact, quality time and the uniqueness of each child. However, being a 'key worker' may mean different things to different people and in different organisations. One struggle is to understand the emotional investment involved in being with young children for many hours a day. Although it may seem ironic, practitioners need some non-contact time, in order to not only plan the curriculum but to explore their own feelings in a safe environment.

We have seen from the work of the Tavistock Clinic on infant observation some of the feelings evoked in adults from being with young babies and their carers. Peter Elfer has been studying this phenomenon for a number of years. He recommends developing an 'emotionally containing' environment for staff, so that they can understand the feelings evoked and so be emotionally available to the children they work with. This might be facilitated through one-to-one support and supervision sessions for staff to talk through their feelings confidentially. Another way is group discussion in an environment where trusting relationships have been built.

I agree that working with the youngest children is most challenging and also has the greatest impact. It deserves to hold a higher status than it currently holds in our culture.

Our Labour Government has, in some ways, done a sterling job in bringing the early years and families more to the forefront of our thinking, in terms of understanding development and learning. The only problem with so many initiatives from the Government is that practitioners may lose some of their spontaneity and initiative.

Research on 'attachment theory' and on brain development has provided helpful theory for practitioners to reflect on and to apply. I wonder if this next step of applying theory to daily practice is always allowed for. Space and time for 'thinking together' about children is a necessary process.

This brings me to my final point: working with babies means working with families, and this takes a level of confidence and training rarely acknowledged. Parents are truly the experts on their children and we should take on board their intimate knowledge of their own children. As parents, we are in awe of what we see developing in our children each day. As workers, we need to be as curious and as dedicated to the children we care for.