To support Maternal Mental Health Awareness Week (5–11 May) and Mental Health Awareness Week (12–18 May), Graco is extending its One Family campaign to elevate the theme for 2025: Community.
To support the Mental Health Foundation’s mission to celebrate the power and importance of community to mental health and wellbeing, Graco will use its Instagram platform to shine a light on people who have been instrumental in building community groups to improve local connection and positive mental health.
To understand the vital role community plays in parenting, Graco partnered with Mother & Baby to conduct research with their readership. Key insights revealed that spending time with friends (42 per cent) and enjoying moments alone (26 per cent) are top priorities for personal wellbeing, alongside regular exercise (52 per cent) as a key factor in maintaining mental health.
To cope with feelings of loneliness or anxiety, the majority of parents (85 per cent) rely on conversations with loved ones, while 67 per cent find comfort in going for a walk. Armed with these insights, Graco is strengthening its commitment to parents by collaborating with family-focused groups that foster meaningful connections and embrace supportive community networks.
For Maternal Mental Health Week, Graco will kick off the campaign showcasing The Cool Mums Club, a growing mum community group based in the Derby/Nottingham area. Leanne and Jade created the Cool Mums Club to make mums feel less alone. Whether mums attend a group meeting, a walk, a soft play meet-up or one of the bespoke market events that bring together small independent retailers under one roof, the team’s objective is always to create a safe and happy environment for local mums.
Graco will also introduce Jess, the franchisee of The Mum Club, Leamington Spa. Full of fun and positive energy, Jess brings this welcoming vibe to her meet-ups, always selecting a fabulous location from Leamington’s eclectic mix of venues. Working with local mum entrepreneurs and welcoming brand collaborations, Jess keeps very busy ensuring that mums in her local community feel seen, heard, and welcomed, in line with The Mum Club’s motto: “You can sit with us”.
Graco will support the launch of Mental Health Awareness Week on 12 May by continuing its support of PANDAs Foundation, the perinatal mental health charity that provides community sessions to give parents guidance through connectivity, offering free counselling sessions and support services across the UK.
Later in the week, Graco spotlights the fantastic dad community: Dad La Soul. Started by Dan Flanagan in 2016, Dad La Soul was created to bridge the huge gap in support for dads and their mental health, highlighting the very serious issue of male suicide. Through a variety of meet-ups as broad as night swimming, puppet shows and huge afternoon raves, the get-togethers encourage and enable dads to have challenging conversations and support one another in this growing and important community.
The two-week focus will be supported through parenting media and underpinned by Fab & Ell (pictured above), a couple who are working with Graco throughout the year, sharing their journey of the highs and lows of parenting their young twins on Instagram and YouTube. During the week, they will share how they manage their mental health to provide support to other parents who might be feeling disconnected and low.
The message from Graco to all parents is that there is help available if they are feeling low, to reach out to local groups to feel seen, supported and connected to your parenting community.
