Ealing Integrated 0-19 Service achieves UNICEF Baby Friendly stage 3

To follow on from World Breastfeeding Week, CLCH is proud to share that the Ealing Integrated 0-19 Service have become the latest team at the Trust to achieve a stage 3 UNICEF Baby Friendly Initiative accreditation. The team encompasses the Ealing health visiting team and Ealing children centres, who do fantastic work across the borough to support breastfeeding and help babies get the best possible start in life.

The Baby Friendly initiative is a global programme which aims to transform healthcare for babies, their mothers, and families as part of a wider global partnership between UNICEF and the World Health Organisation (WHO). In the UK, the Baby Friendly Initiative works with public services to better support families with infant feeding and developing close, loving relationships to ensure that all babies get the best possible start in life. The award is given to health facilities, hospitals, universities and children’s centres once an assessment by a UNICEF team has shown that best practice standards are being adhered to and the service is providing exceptional care and support to families in their crucial early stages.

The health visiting team and children centres in Ealing work together to help parents to build close and loving relationships with their babies. They help parents to feed babies in ways that support optimum health and development, with a focus on protecting, promoting, and supporting breastfeeding. The teams also take a collaborative approach by jointly running infant feeding support groups that take place in children centres across all localities.

Nicole Stephens, Infant Nutrition and Healthy Weight Lead, Ealing 0-19 Service, said: “Achieving Baby Friendly Initiative stage 3 accreditation across our Health Visiting and Children's Centres is a testament to our commitment to collaboration in order to support breastfeeding, ensuring the best start for every child and family in Ealing."

Agnieszka Sheriff, Specialist Public Health Nurse, Clinical Infant Feeding Lead, added: “I am proud of the work that the team has been doing to achieve stage 3; it really showcases their dedication to delivering the best possible care to parents and their babies.”

You can read more about teams across the Trust receiving UNICEF Baby Friendly Initiative accreditations on the CLCH website.