Liz Attenborough on 'The buggy debate'
The manager of the Talk To Your Baby campaign discusses the advantages of pusher-facing buggies
Why aren’t more buggies designed so that the child faces towards the pusher? It seemed such an obvious question when I first heard it. After all, babies and children are naturally sociable from birth. They thrive on interaction and eye contact with others, particularly between birth and two, when most brain development occurs. And it’s at this stage of life that babies spend lots of their time in a buggy.
At the National Literacy Trust’s Talk To Your Baby campaign, we believe that communication should be central to a parent’s relationship with their young child. Talk To Your Baby was set up in 2003 in response to concerns about poor communication skills among young children entering nursery and school. The campaign aims to encourage parents to talk more to their babies and toddlers, helping to develop their talking and listening skills, and we believe that pusher-facing buggies can make this easier.
In a pusher-facing buggy, your baby can still see the world but she has the added advantage of seeing it through your eyes, too, as you chat with her about what’s going on around you both. She also has eye contact with you. The problem with this kind of buggy is that the models currently available are expensive, putting them out of many parents’ reach. But Talk To Your Baby is campaigning to change that.
What parents want
We had more than 1,000 responses to our online buggy survey, with 91 per cent of parents saying they would buy a pusher-facing buggy if they could afford one. Many told us they had swapped buggies for slings so they could talk and listen to their child.
In 2007, Talk To Your Baby launched a Walkie Talkie label to help manufacturers and retailers highlight buggy models that face both ways. And we want these sociable buggies to be more affordably priced.
It’s so important to talk, listen and sing to your baby or child. It helps her become a better communicator, developing skills that will give her a head start at school and set her up for life. While any efforts you make to talk to your child will reap rewards, we believe pusher-facing buggies really do encourage that development and would like them to be an affordable option for all parents.
For more information on the National Literacy Trust’s Talk To Your Baby campaign, visit www.talktoyourbaby.org.uk
What YOU think
"My buggy faces forward because I couldn’t find one facing the other way. I can’t really talk to my son without stopping and coming round to the side. I much preferred it when he was in a pram and I could talk to him all the time." Karen, mum of Aran, 3
"When my daughter was a baby, we had a car seat/buggy combo that allowed her to face me. As a first-time parent, this gave me constant reassurance and also helped with bonding. I believe that my daughter is an articulate three year old because of this." Shiela, mum of Genna, 3
"You get used to forward-facing buggies and children can see much more. Georgia and I sing songs all the way into town and she doesn’t need to see me for that." Louise, mum of Georgia, 19 months, and Joseph, 7 weeks
"A pusher-facing buggy would make interaction easier when they’re young, but they can get bored just looking at Mum. Now, Matthew loves looking around and there’s so much more for him to take in when he faces forward." Rachel, mum of Matthew, 3
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