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This week, 10 – 16 March 2025, is Safer Sleep Week, which is The Lullaby Trust’s national awareness campaign targeting anyone looking after a young baby. It aims to raise awareness of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) and provide simple advice that reduces the risk of it occurring.
Today, we are focusing on Baby Sleep Patterns
Babies’ sleep patterns are different to adults’ and change over the first few years.
Parents might feel like they should help their baby to sleep for longer or through the night. However, it is normal for babies under one (or sometimes older) to wake up during the night. Young babies will wake frequently to be fed. Night waking can be really hard, so ensuring that parents ask for help and make a plan for how to cope can really help.
Encouraging babies to sleep for longer and more deeply for their stage of development may affect their ability to wake up if something is wrong, such as if their mouth and nose become covered. This is a risk of SIDS.
The information below details how much you should expect babies to sleep for their age:
 For more information, and to download a “Baby Sleep Patterns” leaflet to share with families you work with, please visit The Lullaby Trust’s website: Safer Sleep Week - The Lullaby Trust
If you know a family who needs support with their baby’s sleep pattern, please signpost them to their midwife, GP or Health Visitor.
Please look out for tomorrow’s 5 Minute Briefing, where we will be focusing on the facts and myths about safe sleep.
We suggest you cascade this information within your teams and with other agencies you work with, who work with families.
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