The Royal Foundation Centre for Early Childhood
@Earlychildhood
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Transforming society through early childhood. Part of The Royal Foundation of The Prince and Princess of Wales.
Joined April 2022
‘By focusing our collective time, energy & resources on these most preventative years, we can make a huge difference.’. Find out from The Princess of Wales why we've launched #ShapingUs and what we hope to achieve through this important work. @KensingtonRoyal
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Ahead of the launch of our new campaign designed to raise awareness of the critical importance of early childhood, The Princess of Wales has written an open letter outlining why this issue is so important. #ShapingUs
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Today, The Princess of Wales visited the maternity unit at Royal Surrey County Hospital to hear about the holistic support it provides to pregnant women and new mothers.
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Our early childhood shapes everything from the way we form relationships to the way we cope with stress. Huge thanks to our Champions for spreading the message! @MrsGiFletcher @Fearnecotton @professorgreen @ugomonye @JaxJones @leahcwilliamson Zara McDermott #ShapingUs
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“If we are going to create a healthier and happier society for future generations, we must start by understanding and acknowledging the unique importance the first five years of life.” - The Princess of Wales
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Today, The Princess of Wales visited @HarvardCenter to hear about how research and advances in science can be applied to policy and practice to achieve a more promising future for every child.
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Her Royal Highness The Princess of Wales writes in today’s Financial Times (@FT) how business leaders are embracing the significance of #earlychildhood and the need to invest now, as a down payment for our collective future. #ShapingUs.
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Today, we're launching our new #ShapingUs campaign to highlight the importance of early childhood. Watch this video to find out how and why our early childhood shapes the adults we become.
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The Princess of Wales @KensingtonRoyal & #ShapingUs Champion .@romankemp speak about the importance of mental wellbeing, relationships & the impact of nurturing children in their earliest years. Together, we can build a society of healthy, happy adults for generations to come.
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This National Children's Day, learn more about our #ShapingUs campaign by watching this video of children at St John’s CE Primary School chatting about the important people in their lives, who they share their feelings with… and Barnaby Bear 🧸 #NCDUK2023
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Thank you to everyone who is helping to share the #ShapingUs campaign today, including the iconic Piccadilly Lights showcasing our launch video in Piccadilly Circus earlier tonight.
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This morning, The Princess of Wales brought together some of Britain’s most influential business leaders, to discuss how, by investing in #earlychildhood, they can help create the societal change needed to transform lives for generations to come.
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This Friday, hosted by The Princess of Wales, sees the return of a very special carol service. with some very special performances! The service will be a moment to thank all those who work to support babies, young children and families in our communities across the UK. 🎄🎶
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What a day! It’s been so exciting to hear all about your thoughts on the #ShapingUs campaign. This is just the beginning and we can’t wait to share what’s next.
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The Princess of Wales has long been an advocate for the importance of early childhood to lifelong outcomes. Today’s visit shows the importance of early years settings in shaping a child’s development.
Learning through play at Foxcubs Nursery!. Outstanding early years settings like this play a huge role in positively shaping a child’s development. The collaboration between staff and parents is just one of the ways children here are supported in their first five years.
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To mark the launch of #ShapingUs, The Princess of Wales brought the Shaping Us campaign to Kirkgate Market in Leeds, where she spoke to vendors and the public about their experience of early childhood, and what Shaping Us means to them.
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Last year, @earlychildhood funded a trial of an observational tool which helps health visitors to interpret baby behaviour and support parent-child interactions. Today, we're delighted to share the evaluation results, which are overwhelmingly positive.
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Today, The Royal Foundation Business Taskforce for Early Childhood is delighted to announce the publication of a report setting out the business case for prioritising early childhood. #CaseforEarlyChildhood
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👀 keep your eyes peeled tomorrow for the exciting launch of #ShapingUs, a campaign to raise awareness of the importance of early childhood.
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“The future of our children is something we all build together; through the actions each and every one of us takes every day.” - Her Royal Highness The Princess of Wales. #WorldChildrensDay
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What does the science tell us about the importance of #earlychildhood? Does investing early make economic sense? Our Big Change Starts Small report distils everything you need to know:.
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Fathers, like any other caregivers, play a vital role in the social and emotional development of a child. Today The Princess of Wales joined @Dadvengers - a community for dads and their children - on a 'Dad Walk' on what was a rainy but excellent day!. #ShapingUs
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It was lovely to meet with health visitors taking part in a Centre-funded field study, which aims to support the profession to promote infant wellbeing and social and emotional development. #ShapingUs.
Lovely chatting with the wonderful health visitors and mums playing a part in creating a nurturing environment for so many children and parents at the Riversley Park Children's Centre in Nuneaton. Health Visitors are such an important support for new parents from pregnancy
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The Princess of Wales visited Foxcubs Nursery, where she met early childhood educators and joined a discussion with parents about the support the nursery provides on a day-to-day basis, and in their child's long-term development.
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Last week saw the launch of #ShapingUs and what a week it was! . Thank you for helping us celebrate the importance of early childhood .@kensingtonroyal @jaxjones @MrsGiFletcher
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Today, The Princess of Wales met young people with lived experience of the care system, foster carers and adoptive parents and kinship carers to highlight the importance of relationships in #earlychildhood. #ShapingUs
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Our latest case study highlights the implementation of the ADBB tool in Denmark, which is now being trialled here in the UK. This tool allows #healthvisitors to gain additional skills to support a child's development during their earliest years.
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Supporting parents and carers, who are doing their best to provide for their families in challenging circumstances, is essential and can have a life-changing impact. Powered by local communities, baby banks help families and relieve some of the financial pressures they face.
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Thank you to @adamlambert, @Beverleyknight and Freya Ridings for being part of "Together at Christmas" and recognising those helping the youngest members of our communities to flourish. We can't wait to see your performances again on @ITV on Christmas Eve, 7.45pm (GMT) #ShapingUs
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Today, we are delighted to announce the publication of The Shaping Us Framework to help give social and emotional skills the greater priority they deserve, to support The Princess of Wales’ mission of creating a happier, healthier society. #ShapingUs
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The Princess of Wales visited @UniversityLeeds students on the Childhood Studies programme, joining a lecture about children’s learning and development, then speaking to a group of students about the #ShapingUs campaign.
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Today, The Princess of Wales visited @Sebbys_Corner and met representatives of baby banks from across the UK to hear about their crucial work getting items to families including clothing, nappies, toiletries and baby equipment.
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We're delighted to release a film highlighting the vital role of health visitors in supporting families and shaping lives. This responds to our new research showing a lack of public awareness of their role and the depth of the support they provide.
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Every child deserves the best possible chance at building positive and healthy relationships, and the ADBB model is allowing health visitors to gain additional practical skills to help deliver this support. #EarlyChildhood.#ShapingUs.#IMHAW2023
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Over the past few years, The Princess of Wales has visited several baby banks to highlight their crucial work in supporting families with babies and young children.
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Today, we are really excited that The Princess of Wales will join a play session for families and children with special educational needs to highlight the importance of support for neurodiversity in #earlychildhood.
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The stage is set for what is gearing up to be an excellent day. We will be focusing on the most important social and emotional skills people need to thrive in the modern world - that are laid in early childhood but continue to grow for a lifetime!. #ShapingUs Symposium
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Today we're delighted to see the launch of The Baby Bank Alliance, a community of over 300 baby banks supporting families, babies and children in the UK with access to the supplies and clothing that they need to thrive.
Today, we're thrilled to announce the official public launch of the Baby Bank Alliance! 🚀 . We're on a mission to raise awareness of baby banks and their crucial work in supporting families with the essential things they need for their children.
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The work of @damekellystrust is vital in supporting young people to learn how to express, understand and manage emotions, which helps to build meaningful relationships, develop self-confidence and cope with life’s challenges. Thank you for a great day! .
Thank you to the wonderful young women from St Katherine’s School for speaking so openly and honestly about their mental health and how the @DameKellysTrust has supported them 💛
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"We see with beautiful simplicity how her capacities and her identity emerge through the intricate and iterative dance of human interaction." . Professor Eamon McCrory explains the science behind Layla's story on our latest guest essay. Find out more:
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The Princess of Wales and @icelandrichard speak about the crucial impact early years have on our long-term development, the role businesses can play and what they can practically do to come together to affect long-term change.
The foundations for so many of the soft skills businesses are looking for in their workplaces are developed in the earliest years of our lives. Great to chat with @icelandrichard all about our #ShapingUs campaign with @earlychildhood. ▶️
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Last week was the first Business Taskforce meeting that brought together influential leaders to discuss how by investing in #earlychildhood, they can transform lives for generations to come. Hear from some of those leaders in this video:
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The Royal Foundation Centre for #EarlyChildhood is now on Twitter! Follow for our latest news, research and initiatives.
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Following the release of our latest public research, The Duchess of Cambridge today met with ministers @sajidjavid @willquince along with early years sector experts and civil servants to discuss how we can transform society by focusing on #EarlyChildhood
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It's wonderful to see #ShapingUs on the iconic @PicLights! If you happen to be walking past, stop for a moment and take in why #EarlyChildhood matters.
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This work, learning from child and adult specialists globally, is focused on the most important social and emotional life skills people need to thrive in the modern world – the foundations of which are laid in #earlychildhood but continue to grow beyond it.
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“I’m a firm believer in giving children the skills that they need for life.” . The Princess of Wales spoke to children about the importance of connecting with others as part of @Place2Be’s #ChildrensMentalHealthWeek. Watch the full video below.
To mark the start of #ChildrensMentalHealthWeek, Place2Be's Royal Patron The Princess of Wales (@KensingtonRoyal) met with primary school children to discuss the importance of supporting children’s #mentalhealth, and connecting with others. 💛. Read more:
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This Christmas, led by The Princess of Wales, The Centre for Early Childhood is working to get essential goods and basic necessities to families, by supporting Baby Banks. Find out how you can help by visiting our website:
Baby Banks are warm, caring places for families to access equipment, products, clothes and toys to help relieve some of the stresses creating significant pressures on people caring for babies and young children. Watch in full: A film by Will Warr
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Over 10+ years of visits and engagements, The Duchess of Cambridge learned how crucial our #earlychildhood can be in shaping the rest of our lives. Discover her journey here:.
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What a year it's been since the launch of #ShapingUs! . Our campaign highlights the unique importance of early childhood. From pregnancy to the age of five, our brains develop faster than at any other time in our lives.
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Providing strong support for parents and carers during their children's earliest years is essential and can have a life-changing impact. Thank you to the wonderful portage practitioners and families that we met today!. #ShapingUs.
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We're delighted to announce our first ever #ShapingUs Symposium! The event, hosted by The Princess of Wales, will bring together cross-disciplinary leaders, child and adult specialists, and global thinkers for the first time. Find out more:.
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After lots of work behind the scenes with the wonderful Institute of Health Visiting, we are delighted to confirm the expansion of the trial of a tool used by health visitors within routine checks to promote infant wellbeing.
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These are the skills for life that are fundamental to our future health and well-being, influencing everything from our ability to form positive relationships, to our capacity for learning and working, our ability to cope with adversity and our physical and mental health.
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Today’s the day for a special carol service, “Together at Christmas”. This year, it recognises the amazing people who are #ShapingUs by supporting babies, young children and families in communities across the UK. Tune in tonight on ITV at 7.45pm (GMT)!.
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Thank you @JaxJones for sharing your personal experiences with @BigIssue. #earlychildhood is so important and it can play such a crucial role in shaping who we are as adults. We're grateful to have you as a champion of the #ShapingUs campaign!.
“We were homeless for a while, constantly moving across the capital. Mum was often out of work and unable to afford childcare. She did her best by me, but life was tough.”.@JaxJones on why he’s supporting @KensingtonRoyal’s @Earlychildhood campaign.
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What a way to thank those who have gone above and beyond to help babies and children around the UK! Tomorrow is going to be a wonderful day!🎄🎶.
Invites at the ready! . Looking forward to tomorrow’s Carol Service with @earlychildhood and welcoming so many of you who make such a difference to children and families in communities across the country #ShapingUs
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The making of #ShapingUs: We have had such a wonderful response to Layla’s Story so we thought we’d share a little sneak peek behind-the-scenes film of how we brought it to life. ▶️
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Our relationships, experiences and surroundings in the first five years, lay the foundations that shape the rest of our lives. @Portage_UK build partnerships with families that place the child at the centre of everything they do, which is a fantastic example of this! #ShapingUs.
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Today we brought together an influential cross-disciplinary group of leaders and experts with the shared endeavour of understanding how we lay foundations for happier, healthier lives, and, in turn, build a stronger and more nurturing world. Thank you to everyone that joined us.
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Happy World Children's Day! Today we celebrate the youngest members of our society. By building a supportive and nurturing world around children and those who raise them, we can make a huge difference for generations to come. #ShapingUs #WorldChildrensDay
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It was great to see so many familiar faces at this year's carol service and to take a moment to recognise those who have gone above and beyond to help the youngest in our society. We caught up with a few inspiring individuals and here’s what they had to say…. #ShapingUs
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The rapid brain development that occurs during #earlychildhood provides the foundations for every child’s future development. Our new case study explores how the next generation of parents can be engaged on this through @KindredSquared’s SEEN Programme.
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Thank you to Prof Jack Shonkoff, Sara Rajeswaran and Prof Robert Waldinger for outlining the science, business and human perspectives for prioritising #earlychildhood!. #ShapingUs Symposium 2023.
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Our earliest years are so crucial, so it’s great to give a festive thank you to those who are working so hard to help the youngest members of our society to flourish. A special carol service, "Together at Christmas", airs on Christmas Eve!. 📺 @itv.🕣 7.45pm (GMT). #ShapingUs
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It’s been six months since we launched #ShapingUs! The campaign highlights the importance of #earlychildhood and how it can shape the adults we become. It's been a wonderful six months of spreading awareness far and wide! A huge thank you to everyone who's been involved so far!
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Experiences in early childhood are proven to have an impact on us as adults, including resilience and the ability to cope with adversity. @ForwardTrust & HMP High Down's work is supporting families, by making the visit experience a more positive one for children in particular.
Forward were thrilled to host our Patron The Princess of Wales at HMP High Down today, sharing inspiring stories of hope and recovery from addiction, which transforms lives of individuals and their families. ⬇️. @KensingtonRoyal @ActionAddiction #AAW2023
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Today, @Earlychildhood's impact continues with the publication of The Royal Foundation Business Taskforce for Early Childhood report. It outlines how investing in early childhood could boost the economy by £45.5 billion each year. #CaseforEarlychildhood .
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By focusing our collective time, energy, and resources to build a supportive, nurturing world around children and those caring for them, we can make a difference to the physical and mental health and happiness of generations to come. #ShapingUs.
The brilliant @kinshipcharity helps families across the UK where grandparents, relatives or friends raise someone else's child. Spending quality time with these families today has been wonderful.
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The Princess of Wales’ experience working with addiction and mental health charities helped lay the groundwork for her interest in the early years, after hearing how such complex social issues often trace back to childhood experiences. #AddictionAwarenessWeek
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The foundations for social and emotional development are laid in early childhood, between pregnancy and the age of five, which is why those earliest years represent such an opportunity to develop emotional wellbeing right from the start. #EmotionalHealthWeek .@Centrefor_EH
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Why should we be prioritising social and emotional development? Hear what some of our experts friends from across the early childhood sector have to say. ▶️Watch the full film on our YouTube channel: #ShapingUs
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“This is not just about supporting children in the earliest years of their lives. It is also about building healthy communities in which they can grow. Because the healthy development of our children relies on healthy adults”. -Her Royal Highness The Princess of Wales. #ShapingUs
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Our latest public perception survey data highlighted that men are still significantly less aware than women of the extraordinary impact of the first five years of a child’s life, so we are grateful to everyone for discussing their experiences today! .
A fun morning at Maidenhead Rugby Club with #ShapingUs Champion @UgoMonye, and @EnglandRugby stars @dannycare and @Courtney_Lawes chatting about fatherhood and @earlychildhood.
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One day to go! Meet our #ShapingUs Symposium host and speakers! With talks from a range of thought leaders & a panel of experts covering their professional & personal experiences, it's going to be a brilliant day!
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A very special #Christmas delivery is on its way!. Thank you to the hundreds of children who created so many beautiful cards for other children who might be struggling this year.
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It's #KinshipCareWeek! Earlier this year, The Princess of Wales met kinship carers to highlight the critical role they play in enabling children to develop long-lasting relationships, by providing the love and stability they need during #earlychildhood.
💛 #KinshipCareWeek (2-8 October) has landed! The public and political profile of #KinshipCare has never been higher – but we need to push it even further up the agenda. 👇 Below you can find three #DoOneThing actions you can take this week. #KinshipCareWeek.#DoOneThing
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Have you watched Layla's Story yet? Find out how our early childhood shapes the adults we become.
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Our #ShapingUs champions have been visiting their local #BabyBanks to hear more about the difference they make and how to get involved. There are lots of ways to get more help to families, in the run up to Christmas, please visit our website to see how:
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It was fantastic to host Chief Executives of some of the UK’s biggest businesses at Kensington Palace as we reconvened The Royal Foundation Business Taskforce for Early Childhood.
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Helping to build family connections on the Isle of Mull!. Delighted that @homestartuk Lorn shared with @KensingtonRoyal how they are supporting families with young children to promote social and emotional development using The Shaping Us Framework.
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We loved having our #ShapingUs Champion @JaxJones join to meet with @Dadvengers ! A child’s earliest years help to build solid foundations to develop long-lasting relationships with those around them. Thanks to Dadvengers for all that you do!. @Nigelclarketv.
Introducing my Princess to the Princess! 👸 When I’m not doing Donk - I’m doing DJ Dad and being a #ShapingUs Champion for the @KensingtonRoyal. Together we met with @Dadvengers a great organisation that comes together to support dads on their journey through parenthood.
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What a wonderful Carol Service! We are delighted that The Royal Foundation was able to support in saying a special thank you and celebrate community work during the festive season. #ShapingUs.
We’re so proud to have hosted a Community Carol Service in support of The Princess of Wales’ 2023 Together at Christmas Carol Service with @Earlychildhood . We wanted to thank those who do so much to support young children and families in communities across the UK. The importance
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Our Centre Executive Director, Christian Guy, had the honour of meeting The President of Iceland at Kensington Palace earlier this week.
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Our Shaping Us Framework highlights the social and emotional skills that matter most in life. The first skills cluster is all about knowing ourselves. These skills enable us to work out who we are in relation to ourselves, to other people and to the world around us.
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Happy International Day of Play! Play is powerful and deserves to be taken seriously. It is such an important part of how babies and young children learn about themselves, about how to connect with others and explore the world around them.
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Thank you to @chesterzoo, one of twelve locations The Royal Foundation has supported across the UK to host their own "Together at Christmas" Community Carol Services!.
Earlier this month, @chesterzoo hosted its own Community Carol Service with @earlychildhood. Watch our short film from the Service: It was one of 12 community carol services taking place across the UK (and the only one featuring Zoo animals!) thanking
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Perinatal mental health issues can be devastating for women and their families. Today's visit showed the importance of compassionate, high-quality support through pregnancy and the early years, which can make all the difference to parents and their babies.
A wonderful first visit with the Maternal Mental Health Alliance this morning, seeing its work and the benefit a holistic approach brings to so many mothers and families.
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Our aim is to transform the way people think about early childhood. Investing in a child is ultimately an investment in the future health and happiness of the whole of society. On #WorldChildrensDay, what better time to remind ourselves that Big Change Starts Small.
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From data to Denmark, it’s been a busy year for The Royal Foundation Centre for #EarlyChildhood. Find out what’s been happening:.
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Join us in sharing your festive memories! 🎄🎁. Do you have a photo at Christmas of your early childhood? Post and tag us to share the joy! . #ShapingUs.
Sharing some festive memories this Christmas because #ShapingUs is all about the vital importance of our early years and the role played by those around us in shaping the rest of our lives. 📸 of The Princess, Christmas 1983. Don’t miss the Together at Christmas Carol Service
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A child’s earliest years are the best chance to lay strong foundations. We need to support parents and carers during pregnancy and postnatally, while nurturing their efforts to care for the next generation. Thank you Emma and Sapna for sharing your stories. #WorldMentalHealthDay.
Around 1 in 5 women will experience mental health problems during or after pregnancy and 70% will hide or underplay the severity of their illness. Ahead of #WorldMentalHealthDay, @MMHAlliance Lived Experience Champions Emma and Sapna generously shared their stories. Watch the
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We were delighted to co-host an event with Business Taskforce Member @coopuk, bringing together businesses from across the North West to discuss the societal and economic case for investing in early childhood.
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Today on #InternationalDayofCharity we want to say a huge thank you to all the wonderful charities that are supporting the work of @earlychildhood and beyond. Together, we're transforming the way people think about #earlychildhood and helping shape generations to come. #ShapingUs
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There is nothing quite like spending time in a nursery to see the power of play in action. Play is powerful. It encourages babies and young children to develop the social and emotional skills that help shape the rest of their lives.
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A child's earliest experiences shape their developing brain in a way that influences how they grow, learn and behave. Neil Leitch, CEO of @EYAlliance, explains why early education and care is fundamental to children and families.
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Thank you for posting such a lovely picture. We can't wait for Christmas Eve to share in the joy of "Together at Christmas" on ITV at 7.45pm! . #ShapingUs 🎄.
Throwback to Christmas aged 3! . This years Carol service at Westminster Abbey was all about #ShapingUs and thanking all those supporting the very youngest of our society during those crucial early years. Our experiences, relationships and surroundings during early childhood lay
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Today is #Playday2024! Play is fundamental for babies and young children’s enjoyment of childhood, and vital for their health, well-being and development. It is such an important part of how they learn about themselves, connect with others and explore the world around them.
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