Royal Foundation Centre for Early Childhood: Shaping Us

Her Royal Highness The Princess of Wales has today, Tuesday 31 January 2023, launched a major new awareness raising campaign to increase public understanding of the crucial importance of the first five years of a child’s life. Shaping Us is a new long-term campaign from The Royal Foundation Centre for Early Childhood which aims to transform the issue from one of scientific interest to one of the most strategically important topics of our time. Spearheaded by The Princess of Wales, with support from a range of high-profile figures from the world of media, music, science and sports, the campaign will begin with the release of a short film, highlighting how babies and children develop in response to their earliest experiences. The 90-second claymation film shows how a little girl named Layla develops from pregnancy to age five and how she is shaped by her interactions with the people and environment around her. The short film, which features a track by Lokki entitled “Breathe a Breath of Me”, will appear on Piccadilly Lights at Piccadilly Circus and will be screened in cinemas across the UK from Friday. In the film, we see Layla navigate her way through various experiences as a newborn, a toddler and young child, with the help of those around her. The film shows how her interactions with people and places – from her parents’ cuddles, to a reassuring arm on her shoulder from a nursery teacher and supportive cheer from a swimming teacher – stimulate her brain and development. It also shows the importance of the support Layla’s parents receive, helping them to manage the very normal worries and challenges of caring for a new baby. As the film ends, we see Layla celebrating her fifth birthday, surrounded by a large group of family, friends and others, all of whom have played a role in shaping her young life.