Guide to sleep required during the first year

Important recommendations

The most recent advice from The Lullaby Trust and the Department of Health on reducing risk of cot death is that, until they are six months old, babies should be put down to sleep in a room with you at all sleep times during the day and evening as well as during the night. They recommend that the safest place for a baby to sleep is in a crib, cot or Moses basket, and that babies should be checked on regularly when asleep. It is safest to have only bed clothes in the bed, and no objects like toys or muslins. They also advise that a car seat is not an ideal place for very young babies to sleep in the home, and that on long car journeys babies should be carefully observed while in the car seat, with regular stops for fresh air and feeding.

It is important to remember that these recommendations are only the first six months, and that after that time you can start to settle your baby in his own room for naps and night-time sleep. Until your baby reaches six months, you will have to alter the bedtime routine after his bath, so that you can finish off the remainder of the bedtime routine in the room where the baby is being settled to sleep for the evening. Try to replicate the same atmosphere here as you would in his bedroom by keeping everything calm and quiet. It is unlikely that you will have a cot in your living room, therefore, according to The Lullaby Trust, a pram with a proper mattress would be an acceptable option. (Throughout the app, in all routines up to six months, I refer to your baby’s place of sleep as his ‘bed’, which could be a pram or cot.)

It is important to follow the same guidelines for settling your baby in the pram as those given for you settling your baby in a cot. The baby should be placed in the pram with his feet at the bottom and it is essential that any sheets and blankets used are tucked in securely so that they cannot work their way loose. The Lullaby Trust understands that, during the day and evening, there will be times when a baby is asleep and parents may have to leave the room for a short spell. They say this is acceptable as long as the baby is not left for lengthy periods on his own while asleep. If you have any concerns about this advice it is important that you contact The Lullaby Trust or discuss them with your health visitor or GP.

Although the new guidelines may mean that it will take a little longer to establish the routines, please take heart that your baby will eventually get into a good routine.

An easy guide to practising safer sleep for your baby and reducing the risk of sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS, or cot death). Source: The Lullaby Trust