Tag Archive for beds for babies

Baby beds project helps more than 1,000 families

Read the full article on BBC News here

A project set up to ensure young children are able to sleep safely in their early years has helped 1,000 babies and toddlers in its first five months.

The Baby Basics charity in Sheffield was given a share of £2.2m by South Yorkshire Mayor Oliver Coppard to tackle “bed poverty” in families.

The money funded the Beds for Babies scheme, which provides cots, beds, baskets and bedding to those in need.

Cat Ross, CEO of Baby Basics in the UK, said the project meant that parents did not “fall through the net” and could be connected to other support services.

Baby Basics was founded in Sheffield in 2009 and the “baby bank” now has centres in Doncaster and Leeds.

The Beds for Babies launch in June was the first scheme of its kind.

Families are referred through a midwife, health visitor, GP, family worker, social worker, children’s centre, or charities, Ms Ross said.

Beds are delivered without the charity’s volunteers meeting the family directly, enabling them to access additional support.

“It’s a much more cost-efficient way than giving families a voucher to go out and buy a bed,” she said.

The first bed funded through Beds for Babies was delivered in June to Mary in Sheffield, the mother of an 11-week-old, who said it “gave her confidence as a mum”.

“It takes away the worry of ‘how am I going to have a cot for my child and where am I going to get it from?’.

“You can use that energy on something else.”

The South Yorkshire Mayoral Combined Authority said the region had some of the worst health inequalities in the UK.

Coppard said: “We have started to raise the living conditions of nearly a thousand children and babies across South Yorkshire in just a matter of months.

“Bed poverty and health inequality are two of the biggest challenges facing South Yorkshire; a child born here will have a shorter life than a child born in the south of England.

“Through Beds for Babies, we are building the foundation for a better future for South Yorkshire children so they are given the same start in life and opportunities to become the best they can be.”

Ms Ross said every item donated to Baby Basics has a “real impact” and appealed for donations ahead of Christmas.

“Anything from a bottle of shampoo for a mum, a blanket for a newborn, a brand-new toy, or passing on your own baby’s bed that you no longer need.”

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Safe Space to Sleep – Cot Donation Drive

On Saturday, the Baby Basics National Warehouse hosted a cot donation drive as part of the Beds for Babies: a Safe Space to Sleep project.
South Yorkshire’s Mayor Oliver Coppard has partnered with Baby Basics to tackle bed poverty within South Yorkshire by providing every child aged 0-5 with a bed and bedding to ensure they have a safe and comfortable place to sleep.
A huge thank you to the dedicated team of Amazon volunteers, who worked tirelessly to safety-check and clean each bed donated by the public. Thanks to their efforts, 15 beds are now ready to be distributed to families across South Yorkshire!
If your business is interested in contributing time or resources to this vital project, we would love to hear from you. Together, we can provide more families with safe and comfortable spaces for their children to sleep.

IKEA renovates underused community facility in Sheffield

Read this article from IKEA here

To help provide a safe space for those affected by housing instability

IKEA has used its design expertise, products and co-worker time to renovate a previously under-utilised council-owned space in Sheffield, as part of its commitment to the South Yorkshire Beds for Babies: Safe Place to Sleep Programme. Led by South Yorkshire’s Mayor Oliver Coppard, the programme has been designed to tackle inequality in early childhood, with Gleadless Valley one of four pilot locations within South Yorkshire.

As part of the programme, IKEA is working alongside Sheffield Council, Sheffield Hallam University, Baby Basics UK and Shelter to tackle child poverty levels, reduce pressure on public services, improve childhood development and reduce infant mortality.

Having sought engagement with residents of Callow Place, 19 coworkers from IKEA Sheffield set about to create a bright and inviting space for children to play, and their families to seek necessary support. Observing that parents wanted to be at floor level with their children, all furniture was designed to be easily moved or stored away to maximise floor space and the kitchen was entirely replaced with new flooring and fitted units. With the renovation complete, Callow Place can now host a range of classes to support families with young children, including baby weaning, baby massage, breastfeeding and coffee mornings.

The retailer is also providing additional funding to frontline services making use of the centre, such as Shelter, so people can access resources and the support they need for a better life at home. The funding will enable provision of legal advice and drop-in clinics, such as housing rights awareness sessions and skills for employment.

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IKEA’s vision has always been to create a better everyday life for the many people. Better homes are integral to this vision, but we know many people in our communities can’t achieve a better home without support. Partnering with programmes like the South Yorkshire Beds for Babies: Safe Place to Sleep Programme allows us to look after our neighbours whilst helping to tackle child poverty in South Yorkshire and beyond. The Sheffield project is just one of the steps we are taking to help address these concerns across the UK.

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Kiera GuinnaneCommunity Project Manager at IKEA Sheffield

With South Yorkshire seeing some of the starkest health inequalities in the UK, IKEA is also donating £50,000 of sleep essentials to Baby Basics UK – including cots, toddler beds and bedding – for 0–5-year-olds, for use across the region.  These items are distributed to children in need, referred by relevant organisations or statutory agencies.

Picture of the wall with a graphic saying
Beds for babies starter bag

South Yorkshire’s Mayor Oliver Coppard said: “I’m really pleased to see the brilliant work IKEA are doing here in Gleadless, in support of our Beds for Babies programme; helping us to guarantee babies and young children across South Yorkshire have a safe place to sleep.

“We have some of the worst health inequalities in the UK, with 1 in 9 newborns in Sheffield alone going home from hospital without a safe place to sleep last year. I refuse to let that stand in South Yorkshire. But we can’t solve bed poverty alone. That is why I’m working with partners from IKEA, our councils, the health service, the charity sector and academics to support families in need, by providing not just a bed or cot or moses basket, but wider support and advice to help with child development, and support with employment and housing.

“I’m genuinely grateful for what IKEA staff have done to this community space, with the refurbishment and wider support for Beds for Babies. I know it’ll be an invaluable asset to the local community.”

The Sheffield project will now provide a blueprint for IKEA’s work with the Royal Foundation Business Taskforce for Early Childhood – expanding its contribution of support, design expertise and products for babies and young children to six new locations across the UK to help families with young children experiencing the greatest disadvantage.

South Yorkshire’s Mayor Oliver Coppard chatting with four people

Cllr Dawn Dale, Chair of the Education, Children’s and Families Committee, said: “We always say that as a Council we are passionate about making Sheffield a city of hope and aspiration, where everyone can share in its success.

“In all we do we want children and young people, and their family members too, to feel loved, accepted and safe. Having safe spaces like this available to go and nurture those feelings and play and learn together is vital for everyone’s positive development.

“It’s great to see partners come together like this to create such a welcome addition to the community.”

Cllr Kurtis Crossland, Chair of the Communities, Parks and Leisure Policy Committee, said: “It’s vital that as a Local Authority we do all we can to provide for the needs of the communities we serve.

“Spaces like this enable members of our communities to come and seek support both from members of our staff and their peers to help them with any issues they may be experiencing as parents, carers, family members or just members of the community.

“We’d like as a Council to thank all those who worked hard to renovate this space for the people of Gleadless Valley to use.”

Hiliary Jenkins, Communities Lead, IKEA UK, ended: “By guaranteeing families who need access to a safe bed, cot or cot bed, we can make a huge difference to education, health and social outcomes later in their lives, as well as reducing the real-life financial pressures facing many families in South Yorkshire. IKEA’s donation to Baby Basics will provide safe sleeping arrangements, including beds, cots, or cot beds, along with essential items such as mattresses, mattress protectors, sleep bags, sheets, and duvets/covers when appropriate. This donation comprises 2,150 IKEA items, benefiting 243 children and their families.”