An evidence-based assessment tool to support expectant and new parents
The antenatal period and early years of a child’s life can have a profound impact on their future physical and emotional safety and wellbeing. It’s important that parents are given support to provide the best care for their developing baby and newborn infant1.
Graded Care Profile 2 Antenatal (GCP2A) helps a range of professionals working with expectant parents to identify areas of strength and areas where they may benefit from support.
How it works
The tool is split into three sections. Each section uses a graded scale of 1 to 5 where 1 indicates no concerns and 5 indicates high concerns.
Sections 1 and 2 (Getting to know you and your pregnancy and Getting ready for baby) focus on the antenatal period, looking at the quality of consideration given to the developing baby. Section 3 (Now baby is here) is delivered during the postnatal period to review the quality of care in the early days of life.
The tool is based on Graded Care Profile 2 (GCP2) and includes areas of known risks that are linked to safeguarding concerns perinatally and in babies. It can help professionals build a picture to identify where concerns might emerge in relation to the impact on the developing baby. It can also be used as an indicator for potential safeguarding issues after birth.
Graded Care Profile 2 Antenatal has been piloted and tested for validity and inter-rater reliability. The results were positive so GCP2A can be used with confidence.
References
Gerhardt, S. (2004) Why love matters: how affection shapes a baby's brain. New York: Routledge.