Events and resources

Coffee mornings

Essex Babylab hosts regular coffee mornings for parents with babies, parents-to-be, and anyone interested in how babies learn and develop. These informal, friendly sessions are a chance to learn about current research in child development while connecting with others over a cup of tea or coffee.

Many parents feel pressure to follow parenting books or “rules” in order to be good parents. Our aim is to challenge this idea by helping parents recognise that they already have the most important expertise: an understanding of their own baby. By sharing science-based insights and the latest research findings, we show that there is no single manual for parenthood and that responsive, attentive caregiving can take many forms.

Each coffee morning focuses on a different topic, such as prenatal development and maternal health, emotional development, feeding and eating behaviour, language, and imitation. We combine up-to-date research with practical, everyday tips that parents can reflect on and apply in ways that feel right for their own family.

From the Womb to the World

From the Womb to the World (WoW) is a multidisciplinary group founded by the Essex Babylab researchers in collaboration with a team of independent practitioners interested in supporting child development.

We all share a strong interest in studying how parental behaviour and interactions with babies (inside and outside the womb) develop during the first year of life.

We want to promote ideas exchange and a better understanding of the real needs of the community, through the use of online platforms and events and workshops for parents and families. Our group aims  to promote:

• Support: give families the support they need to facilitate and promote their relationship with their babies.
• Empowerment: by providing the tools to learn and use the latest scientific discoveries, we want to facilitate the communication of evidence-based research in the community.
• Continuity: from pregnancy to childbirth, new parents receive a variety of advice and information from different sources, with very little continuity throughout their journey. We want to offer a platform where new parents can be accompanied from the beginning of their pregnancy throughout the first years of life of their babies.

If you are a practitioner, professional, or researcher who shares our interests and would like to connect, collaborate, or learn more, we’d love to hear from you.