Suffolk County Council’s Children and Young People’s Community Health Service Gains Baby Friendly Award

Suffolk County Council’s Children and Young People’s Community Health Service has been awarded the prestigious Baby Friendly Award and is the latest UK health care service to gain recognition from the UK Committee for UNICEF (UNICEF UK) Baby Friendly Initiative. 

The service, which is funded by the council’s Public Health and Communities Directorate has gained Stage 3 accreditation, which means that the service is fully accredited.

The accreditation stages have involved comprehensive training around infant feeding for all staff using training resources based on UNICEF Baby Friendly Initiative’s ‘Breastfeeding and Relationship building’ material. The service achieved Stage 1 accreditation in July 2017, Stage 2 in March 2021, and following the most recent assessment from UNICEF, which included the experiences of mothers interacting with the service, Suffolk County Council’s Children and Young People’s Community Health Service has achieved Stage 3 accreditation.

The award was presented by Cllr Bobby Bennett at an award ceremony on Tuesday 16 July at The Orangery, Holywells Park, Cliff Lane, Ipswich.

Cllr Bobby Bennett, Cabinet Member for Children and Young People’s Services at Suffolk County Council, said: “I am really proud that our team in Suffolk have received this award from the UNICEF UK Baby Friendly Initiative. We set out to ensure that all parents and babies are supported to form a close and loving relationship – whatever their choice of feeding method – as this is the best start for every baby

“This award is a reflection of our ongoing commitment to increase breastfeeding rates in Suffolk. Breastfeeding protects babies against a wide range of serious illnesses, including gastroenteritis and respiratory infections in infancy, as well as cardiovascular disease, asthma, diabetes and obesity later in life. We also know that breastfeeding reduces the mother’s risk of some cancers, and that it can support the mental health of both mother and baby.”

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 Organization (WHO). In the UK, the Baby Friendly Initiative works with public services to better support families with feeding and developing close, loving relationships in order to ensure that all babies get the best possible start in life. The award is given to health services after an assessment by a UNICEF UK team has shown that recognised best practice standards are in place.

"We are delighted that Suffolk County Council’s Children and Young People’s Community Health Service has achieved full Baby Friendly status," said UNICEF UK Baby Friendly Initiative Deputy Programme Director, Anne Woods. “Our work to support breastfeeding is based on extensive and resounding evidence that breastfeeding saves lives, improves health and cuts costs in every country worldwide, rich and poor alike. Mothers in Suffolk can be confident that their Community Health Service will provide high standards of care.”