THIS week sees cities across the UK host Baby Week events for professionals and parents to raise awareness of the importance of the early stages of a child's life.

Baby Week campaigns for and promotes the best start in life. Events are taking place in person and online to highlight that the first 1,001 days of a baby's life are key to a child's development.

Here at the NSPCC, we do all we can to support parents and families build better bonds with their children throughout those days, and support parents-to-be during pregnancy.

One free service we're running from our Yorkshire hub is Pregnancy in Mind, offering support to parents who have experienced, or are at risk of experiencing, mild to moderate levels of anxiety or depression during pregnancy.

Mental health problems during pregnancy and after a child is born affect more than one in five mums and around one in 10 dads. These experiences are more common than many imagine and can make it harder for parents to enjoy pregnancy and focus on building early bonds with their baby. That, in turn, can impact on an infant's early development.

Pregnancy in Mind delivers virtual sessions for parents to learn mindfulness meditation, active relaxation techniques and coping skills. They'll also be offered social support and advice on how couples can look after their emotional health during what can be a stressful time. Parents who have already taken part tell us it has helped them to manage negative thoughts, learn more about connecting to their unborn baby, reduce worries about becoming parents and feel less isolated.

Once a baby is born, the NSPCC offers support to parents and carers through our Look Say Sing Play campaign, which gives confidence to have fun with their babies, safe in the knowledge that every song they sing or game they play will help develop their brain. Expensive toys, games or equipment aren't essential when we can use our voices and things we have to hand to build those bonds.

The campaign encourages parents and carers to Look at what their baby is focusing on and how they react, Say what they're doing and copy the sounds their baby makes, Sing along to their favourite tune and Play simple games. Hearing silly voices, playing little games and singing regular songs helps a baby's mind grow and develops powerful bonds that can last a lifetime. It can be hard to think of ways to introduce these interactions into day-to-day life so Look, Say, Sing, Play offers weekly tips via email or online sessions. Call (01274) 381440 or visit nspcc.org.uk