United for the First 1001 Days: Insights from Arendalsuka
20 August 2025
By Dr Matt Price, Director of Research & Grants
Here at the 1001 Critical Days Foundation, we are driven by our mission to support parents and carers around the world to give their baby the best start in life. One way that we achieve this is through international advocacy, and where better to start than in Norway?
This week Dame Andrea Leadsom and I have been fortunate to spend time with academics, practitioners and politicians in Norway at their annual Arendalsuka: the largest cross-party political gathering in Norway. This is a unique event – imagine a party-political conference, but where all parties across the political spectrum come together. They engage in debates and roam the streets of a picturesque town, speaking with organisations and members of the public. It is a lively and engaging event that is driven by the values of openness and transparency in public service. In this blog, I share my reflections and the inspiration from my time in Norway.
Norway’s proud history of prioritising early childhood.
Norway has a global reputation as a leader in prioritising early childhood. And rightly so. The country has a strong track record of investing in early childhood and how to nurture social and emotional skills in early infancy. For example, since the late 2000s they have rolled out training in Circle of Security to support parents to understand what babies need and respond with warmth and understanding. It was clear that this history shaped everything we saw and heard during our visit.
So, what were my top four reflections after this visit?
The people are passionate about giving every baby the best start in life.
The commitment to babies and families is driven by a passionate group of professionals. We presented to a truly multi-disciplinary team and met midwives, public health nurses, family therapists, psychologists, psychiatrists, GPs, physiotherapists and dentists. They all had one thing in common: a deep interest in the unique importance of the 1001 critical days.
2. The importance of joining up the system around babies is universally true around the world.
Norway has a well-established model of bringing together the most important practitioners for babies and families. We visited two different health centres (‘helsestasjon’) and it was brilliant to see public health nurses, midwives, GPs, physiotherapists, and family therapists co-located. We heard how important this was for babies and parents and were reminded of how centrally we hold this in England – a core principle of the Best Start Family Hubs is that they should be a ‘one-stop-shop’ for families.
There was a real interest from ministers and practitioners in Norway to learn from the UK’s experience of rolling out family hubs and start for life services. For example, we discussed the importance of having an ‘open access’ approach. In England, the most impactful family hubs welcome any parent or carer to drop in for a coffee, tea, or browse the little library. This open-door approach reduces stigma and makes it easier for families to access further support, from mental health care to parenting programmes.
3. The power of alliances.
Just as babies thrive most when they have a network of secure attachment relationships, the system thrives when it is supported by a network of organisations working together for a common cause. One of the highlights of my trip, was being part of the launch of the 1001 critical days alliance – more than a dozen organisations uniting in commitment to prioritising this unique opportunity to provide support when it matters most. We are stronger together and as former minister and long-term supporter of babies, Inga Marte Thorkildsen, said: “We must be brave and impatient to make change. Babies can’t wait.”
4. There are universal challenges.
It was fascinating to discuss with Norwegian leaders and politicians the challenges that we have also been grappling with in the UK. There are some universal issues that are complex and require careful consideration and a nuanced approach. For example, Norway has long had one of the most generous state-funded approaches to parental leave. We heard that currently: mothers get 15 weeks of funded leave, fathers get 15 weeks of funded leave, and the family can choose who gets a further 15 weeks of funded leave. Fathers cannot choose to share their entitlement with their partners. If they chose not to take their leave that funding would disappear. This means that many mothers need to return to work after six months, which can be difficult for those who would like to stay home longer but can’t afford to. This can be especially difficult for those wishing to breastfeed for longer than six months. We also learned that many babies enter full time childcare when they are nine months old. How we can balance support, choice and equality for mothers and fathers while holding a baby’s best interests in mind is a common challenge around the world.
Learning and growing together.
It was such an honour to visit Norway and meet such inspirational practitioners, leaders and politicians. This was our first trip to Norway, but I know that our commitment to uniting for the betterment of babies is just beginning.
