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Petitioner submission of 25 October 2021

PE1883/B - Open all toddler and baby activities within Tier 3 of COVID-19 /future pandemic lockdowns

I started my Facebook group to start Baby and Toddler Activities again in Scotland because while other age groups such as nursery age, primary school and secondary schools were going back last year, the advice and guidance for baby/toddler groups meant that most of the groups in my locality were not running because of the restrictions.

So, while nursery children of all ages could go in and interact with each other, the baby and toddler groups which eventually did open were mostly franchise companies. This meant that you had to book in blocks where the parents had to sit with their children many metres apart. Children of all ages should have been able to interact and socialise.

When reviewing the guidance for running toddler groups that was made public on October 5 2020, I realised that the groups would mostly be for parents with babies under 12 months. For older toddlers, only five parents within the group which made it an impossibility for most established toddler groups to run.

As all research based evidence suggests the first 3-5 years of a child’s life are the most important in terms of development. Apart from play which you admittedly focused on, socialisation is as equally as vital. Even though there was guidance in October 2020 for the provision of toddler groups, the general consensus from parents on social media when asked was that baby/toddler groups were not available until March/April/May of this year. This means more than a year without socialisation for some babies/toddlers.

Also, I would like to point out that it was in the summer of 2020 when pubs and cafes were opening for adults and older groups however the guidance for baby and toddler groups wasn’t prioritised until October 2020. Again, age groups not being treated equally. I understand that the effects on the economy and business were adverse, however the effects on the pre-nursery age group and their parents were also adverse. I have heard that many children of this age group have since had speech and language input and are not as interactive with other children.

In terms of socialisation, a lot of learning happens in this age group from sharing, playing fair, playing side by side, and even just feeling comfortable around other children. These are just some of the examples of the things that were getting taught at baby and toddler groups before they were closed.

With regards to the funding for outdoor activities, people within my group said the funding criteria was complicated, confusing and at times were getting denied. Another comment from the third sector was that 23 charities or groups is not a lot across the whole of Scotland depending on whether the charities/groups reach a large area, which means that it has become a postcode lottery. Rather than sending a big sum for funding once there is a problem, is it not better to pre-empt that without toddler groups there is a problem and support the groups already in place as much as we can when we can, so that many more groups/businesses survive?

My questions for this government are:

1. If you can open up nurseries and schools will you also allow the same level of socialisation for children in Baby Toddler groups equally?
2. If you can open up pubs and cafes that allow older groups to socialise will you also at the same time (if babies/children are not at risk) allow baby and toddler activities like toddler groups and soft play if they are following the cleaning standard required of nurseries/schools?
3. If there is a need to fund a different type of activity outdoors will you also realise the value of the groups well established, well known within communities and help them with funding and make it easy to access, for the well-being of the babies/toddlers and parents?
4. If restricted numbers are needed to allow the funding to run extra groups, will there be support from the government to make sure there are groups running within each wider community within Scotland?
5. Will you provide support for parents who are having to navigate developmental milestones when they have no one within their social bubbles that can help with the socialisation, as well as play between children?
6. Overall will you make this age group i.e. between 0-3 years a priority also, and how will you deal with the after effects for children in this age group?