Almost 300,000 baby boxes have been delivered to expecting families in Scotland since 2017, according to figures published by the SNP.

The SNP said the Scottish Government has delivered 283,118 baby boxes over the last six year period, stating the project was started to give children of all backgrounds an equal start in life.

The boxes include baby clothes, blankets, books, bibs, nursing pads and a thermometer.

The box itself also doubles up as a bed for newborn babies.

The SNP said the boxes should help ease financial pressures on young families over Christmas.

SNP MSP Fulton MacGregor said: “I welcome these new figures which show that 283,118 baby boxes have been delivered to families across Scotland, supporting households with the costs of raising a child from before its even born.

“We know that raising a child is an expensive endeavour, and these jam-packed baby boxes from the SNP Scottish Government will help to ensure that each child born in Scotland is given an equal start in life.

“From expanding free funded early learning years care, to the Scottish Child Payment and Best Starts Grant, the SNP is committed to making Scotland the best place in the world for children to grow up.”

The scheme was introduced under former first minister Nicola Sturgeon in August 2017 and was inspired by a similar initiative in Finland.

It has though divided opinion with one study, published by the Lancet, this year, finding the boxes had no impact on infant and maternal hospital admissions or infant sleeping position. 

The biggest benefit was an increase in the number of mothers under 25 who were exclusively breastfeeding their child.

However midwives were supportive of the boxes and believed the scheme should be extended to the rest of the UK.

In 2018 Gill Walton, the RCM's chief executive and general secretary, said giving the boxes to all new mothers in the UK would provide a "more equal start to life for the baby".

"Most importantly, by enabling parents to give their babies a safe sleeping space, baby boxes may reduce unsafe co-sleeping or babies sleeping in an inappropriate place such as a sofa," she added.

The RCM did, however, acknowledge that there was limited evidence around baby boxes reducing deaths from sudden unexpected death in infancy (SUDI).

Other countries have followed Scotland in giving the baby box to families including the Republic of Ireland which rolled out a pilot scheme this year.