News

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N A T I O N A L B R E A S T F E E D I N G I N F O R M A T I O N A N D S U P P O R T

In this issueAu revoir from Ann-Marie - pg 3

‘How Baby Café helped me’ - mums tell their stories - pg 4

NewsIn this issue

Au revoir from Ann-Marie - pg 3

‘How Baby Café helped me’ - mums tell their stories - pg 4

Horley’s secrets of success - pg 5

page 2page 2

In this edition...Everybody’s talking about it - news page 3

from the Baby Cafés

Baby Café helped me! page 4

Horley’s secrets of success page 5

In the news: snips and clips page 6

Q&A: longer term breastfeeding page 7

Websites and helplines page 8

Strong on fi nance We are pleased to announce that 55% of Cafés paid their invoices quicker this year than last year, and the last invoice was settled over three months earlier.

This obviously makes a big difference to the Baby Café team, as it means we can concentrate on other work rather than chasing money! So we would like to say a big thank you to all those Cafés who helped us this year. And remember it’s never too soon to think about next year’s fi nances - making sure we have the correct details for your Finance Contact, checking if you need to raise a purchase order before the invoice, and, if you’re relying on grants, starting to research further sources of funding.

Hello! Dear all...Firstly I’d like to thank you all for such an excellent turnaround on the annual returns this year.

I don’t think we have ever had such a fast response before. The Annual Report can be found in the Resource Bank of the website, Facilitators’ section (www.thebabycafe.org/for-facilitators).

One of the major themes standing out at the moment is the diffi culty with funding. Several Baby Cafés have won grants, and one of the keys to success is using the evidence that underpins our model showing that we support mothers to breastfeed, along with statements about the benefi ts of being part of the Baby Café group.

We have also been working on updating the Baby Café Toolkit, and hope to release an electronic version soon.

Finally, as you’ll see on page 3, Ann-Marie Steel has left the team of trainers. I know many of you in the North have got to know her well over the past few years and will miss her, as I will. We wish you good luck with your new role Ann-Marie.

Here’s hoping for a long and glorious summer.

Best wishes

Trina - Baby Café Co-ordinatorTrina - Baby Café Co-ordinator

Websites and helplines page 8Websites and helplines page 8

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Everybody’s talking about

it... See the new Baby Café website

Please take a look at the new Baby Café website (www.thebabycafe.org).

The Resource Bank has updated guidance documents to help with the day-to-day running of your Café. We can upload a picture of your Café to your webpage, helping you to attract new mums. Please send a large, high quality photo (minimum of 1800px X 900px), preferably of the inside of your venue, to info@thebabycafe.org.

Celebrating our long-standing Cafés

Some of our Baby Cafés have reached a ripe old age, and we would like to thank them for supporting so many mums.

Seven Baby Cafés are 10 years or older: Abingdon and Calderdale both turn 15 this year. Other anniversaries in 2017: Horley celebrated their 10th birthday party in January and Healthy Start Baby Café, Gorleston, turned 10 in April. Huddersfi eld turned 13 in May. Donnington Doorstep in Oxford (previously Rosehill and Littlemore) turns 10 in September, and Redhill and Reigate will turn 10 in December 2017.

Close on their heels is Caterham Baby Café, which celebrated its 9th birthday with a cake baked by mum Natalie (pictured below). Many, many congratulations to you all - we look forward to celebrating more birthdays with you in the years to come.

...events and happenings in Baby Cafés around the country

Au revoir, but not goodbye!

After 3 years as northern trainer for the national Baby Café team, NCT Breastfeeding Counsellor Ann-Marie Steel is leaving her post for an exciting opportunity in her local area to set up a well-being and signposting café, training and managing volunteers and leading a town-wide mental health training scheme.

She says. “Unless someone could magic me up another couple of days to the week, I won’t have the fl exibility to travel to train and visit any longer.”

Ann-Marie will continue to run the Workington Baby Café (nearly fi ve years old). “I have thoroughly enjoyed my time working alongside Trina, Julia, Isabelle, Kerry and Sherry over the last three years and I wish the Baby Café team well in the future.”

3

Keeping safe in your

Baby Café and keeping

your Baby Café safe

Our website Resource Bank contains new

safeguarding guidance.

The key message is that the safeguarding policy

you should adhere to is the one that belongs to the

organisation that funds your service (see www.

thebabycafe.org/for-facilitators/resource-bank).

page 4 4

Pela Chojak moved from Poland to Peterborough in 2013 and found a new life through training as a Baby Café peer supporter.

“Everything was different and too hard in the beginning but we had to be strong for our kids. I have used my spare time to improve my English and found an advert to train as a breastfeeding peer supporter. I thought - why not? My English wasn’t perfect, but I have had a fabulous time with other volunteers. Every moment with newborn babies and their mums at Peterborough City Hospital was worth the hard work.

Now, three years later, I’m working as a physiotherapist in a private clinic and running my own small business, and unfortunately, I no longer have time to regularly volunteer, but I will in future. Peterborough has given me a lot so I’m trying give some in return.”

Rhian Williamson turned to Baby Café for help with Rhys.

“I fi rst visited the Beckenham Baby Café when I was pregnant, worried that with a baby due in early December I’d spend the winter months stuck indoors, too self-conscious to venture out and feed my baby in public. I was impressed immediately by the relaxed and welcoming atmosphere.

After an emergency C-section it took a few hours until I was able to be skin-to-skin with my son, Rhys, and he had to have formula whilst I recovered from the anaesthetic. I struggled to fi nd a manageable breastfeeding position where Rhys would latch. We were

supported to express and try new positions whilst in hospital and on coming home I was able to feed in one position on each side, using a feeding pillow to protect my scar.

Over Christmas I found that I was suffering from upper back and shoulder pain and knew that the cross cradle feeding position was the likely cause. I turned to the Baby Café where Kate helped me to feed using the Biological Nurturing position, which not only alleviated my back pain but instantly reduced the length of time that feeding took and led to Rhys burping himself whilst on the breast - I couldn’t have been happier!”

Baby Café helped me!

Baby Café offers friendship, a listening ear plus encouragement

and support. This can be important for mums struggling with

confi dence and worries. In this issue we hear from Rhian

Williamson and Pela Chojak who share their stories.

Baby Café offers friendship, a listening ear plus encouragement

and support. This can be important for mums struggling with and support. This can be important for mums struggling with

confi dence and worries. In this issue we hear from Rhian

Williamson and Pela Chojak who share their stories. Real life stories

Pela Chojak moved from Poland to Peterborough in 2013 and found a new life through training as a

“Everything was different and too hard in the beginning

spare time to improve my English and found an advert

- why not? My English wasn’t perfect, but I have had a

with newborn babies and their mums at Peterborough

page 5

Horley Baby Café is reaching the grand age of 10 this year. What lies behind their success? Anne Humphreys, NCT Breastfeeding Counsellor who has facilitated the Café since 2007, spills the beans.

“Our ethos is very much about creating a self-supporting group who are very nurturing towards each other. Nurturing new mothers as they come into that mothering world is one of the most important things we do. It’s not just about breastfeeding in isolation. Peer supporters are central to how we work. Many have been with Baby Café for years and are really skilled. They run the sessions, so that I can focus on counselling mothers. They bring their children to sessions, which means that new mothers witness introduction of solids and caring for toddlers.

We started the Baby Café in Horley in January 2007 and since then two more Baby Cafés have opened (at Redhill and Reigate, and at Caterham). The teams coordinate and meet three times a year to share ideas and solve any problems. We train peer supporters locally ourselves, which helps to keep costs down.

Special FeatureMany then stay on - my oldest peer supporter has been with me for nine years.

The mothers who come to the Cafés are often the ones with trickier problems and have slipped through the net elsewhere. We get a lot of babies with tongue-tie and other tricky issues. We offer information so that mums are more able to make decisions. If we think a baby may have tongue-tie we make a referral and then support the mum with breastfeeding before and after treatment.

Some mums come back with their next babies - one recently came back with her third!

The funding to pay for refreshments and for my time as facilitator came initially from Horley Children’s Centre and the Windmill Children’s Centre. The Café has recently moved to the Old Fire Station at Horley, operated by Surrey County Council.

The manager of Horley Children’s Centre herself came to the Baby Café as a mother. If you’ve got people who know what you’re trying to do that makes all the difference.”

Horley’s secrets of success

Lauren’s storyLauren Whitehouse was a ‘young mum’ when her fi rst baby Rhys was born, and plans to train as one of the peer supporters at Horley Baby Café.

Rhys initially had trouble latching on and Lauren found out that she had inverted nipples. She wore nipple shields for 10 months in order to feed him. Her second baby, Darcie, latched on straight away and has breastfed well, with and without the shields.

“The younger generation often say no to breastfeeding; I’m amazed I carried on. I love it. I love the bonding. I think it’s a lovely thing to do. I fi nd it incredible to see what we can do – as a mum. All that development! Our bodies make that happen. We’re incredible!

“I like telling people about my journey with Rhys and that there’s nothing to be ashamed of about breastfeeding. I don’t want to pressurize other mums but just let them know that they can do it.”

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Peer support boosts

emotional wellbeing,

study shows

Peer supporters play a strong part in reducing

new mothers’ stress and building their

confi dence and emotional wellbeing,

according to research by the National

Perinatal Epidemiology Unit, Oxford.

The research quoted one mum’s relief at being

able to talk with a trained peer supporter. ‘You

can be open and you can be yourself, and if you

have got something on your mind you know you

can say it without being judged.’ See the full

report here http://bit.ly/2sc4vOd

Sally weans from night nursingBy Lesli D. Mitchell

I was delighted to receive this book to review.

Written by a mum from California, based on her own experiences, it concerns older babies (15 months plus) who still want to wake up and feed at night, while their mums would prefer they slept through. It has words for mums as well as a story to read to children.

So, if you are exhausted from night feeding and want something to help explain to your child about not feeding at night you might fi nd this useful. The author has kindly offered a few more copies for the fi rst Baby Cafés who get in touch; so if you’d like one do let me know by emailing Trina.Warman@nct.org.uk.

Trina Warman, Baby Café Co-ordinator

Facebook

Sally weans from night nursing

Facebook...snips and clips about babies, breastfeeding and more

In the news...

Vitamin D for babiesDull winters in the UK mean that we often don’t get enough sunlight for our bodies to make suffi cient vitamin D naturally.

We should therefore all be taking vitamin D supplements. Everyone over one year of age should take 10 micrograms per day of Vitamin D, and breastfed babies from birth up to one year of age, 8.5 to 10 micrograms per day, as a precaution, according to the Scientifi c Advisory Committee on Nutrition. Pregnant and breastfeeding mothers are recommended to take 10 micrograms daily. For more details see: http://bit.ly/2syDlOV

report here http://bit.ly/2sc4vOd

Q - My baby has teeth - can I still feed? I’m worried I might be bittenA - Yes! If your baby is well attached to the breast then her bottom teeth will be covered by her tongue. If latched on properly and actively feeding a baby won’t be able to bite. Sometimes you might feel pressure from the top teeth, if that makes you sore, remove your baby from the breast and adjust the position. To lessen chances of being bitten, try and recognise when the feed has ended and remove your baby from the breast then so that they are less inclined to bite or clamp down. Ouch!

Sometimes babies will fuss at the breast when teeth are coming through when their gums are sore. Some mums fi nd frozen teething rings or rubbing some ice onto the gums can help. Often babies produce more saliva when they are teething and sometimes that can make nipples a bit sore. Like most stages, this passes but can be uncomfortable at the time. Making sure that your baby is well-positioned and attached to the breast in the optimal position will help cut down any discomfort. Do go to your local Baby Café and ask someone to watch you feed if you are not sure.

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Q&A...Baby Cafés are a great place to offer parents

support and information in a relaxed

atmosphere. However, not all situations are

straightforward. Here are some tips on

dealing with long-term feeding.

Q - I’m going back to work and I want to

continue breastfeeding - is that possible?

A - Yes, most mums return to work at some stage,

often sooner rather than later. Breastfeeding

before you go to work gets you both off to a good

start for the day and then again when you come

home is a great way to reconnect after time

apart. It’s also an excuse to sit down!

You can express milk for someone else to offer to

your baby when you are at work. Do make sure it

is carefully labelled with your/your baby’s name

on it and that the person looking after your baby

knows if you only wish them to have that and no

other types of milk. Most nurseries should have

policies and guidelines for storing expressed

breastmilk. If you are not sure it’s best to check

with them.

Q - What’s the best way to store expressed milk?

A - There are many different studies around the

length of time you can store expressed breastmilk.

It can be confusing because they all say slightly

different things. NHS guidance recommends

storing expressed milk in a fridge which has a

temperature of 40oC where the milk is safe for up

to fi ve days.

If you’re not sure of the temperature or if it is

higher, it is best to use it within three days.

It’s also best not to keep the milk in the fridge

door but on a shelf towards the back where the

temperature is more consistent. You can also

freeze your milk and keep it in a freezer, for up to

two weeks in the freezer compartment of a fridge

and up to six months in a freezer that stays at

-18oC. Wherever you store it, however, you should

carefully label it with the date you expressed it.

It’s best to freeze milk in small quantities so as

not to waste after defrosting.

Baby Café News is the magazine for visitors and facilitators

linked with the Baby Café.

The Baby Café is a network of breastfeeding drop-in

support groups. They aim to offer help and support

to mothers at any stage in their breastfeeding journey,

regardless of the age of the baby or child. Pregnant

women are welcome too. You don’t need to have a

problem to attend - lots of mums come because they

enjoy being in a group with other breastfeeding women

chatting about their experiences. There are Baby Cafés

across the UK and other parts of the world. For more

information see thebabycafe.org

The newsletter is published 3 times a year by NCT.

We welcome contributions to Baby Café News.

Editor: Julie Clayton

Graphic design: NCT Design Team

Baby Café News is published by NCT, Brunel House,

11 The Promenade, Clifton Down, Bristol BS8 4AG.

NCT Baby Café is a trading name of The National Childbirth

Trust Limited company registered in England and Wales:

2370573 Registered address: 30 Euston Square, Stephenson Way,

London, England NW1 2FB.

Registered charity in England and Wales: 801395 and Scotland:

SC041592

Baby Café News is the magazine for visitors and facilitators

linked with the Baby Café.

The Baby Café is a network of breastfeeding drop-in

support groups. They aim to offer help and support

to mothers at any stage in their breastfeeding journey,

regardless of the age of the baby or child. Pregnant

women are welcome too. You don’t need to have a

problem to attend - lots of mums come because they

enjoy being in a group with other breastfeeding women

chatting about their experiences. There are Baby Cafés

across the UK and other parts of the world. For more

Breastfeeding on the webOur ‘where to f ind out more’ favourites:kellymom.comGreat for fi nding answers to common questions about breastfeeding nct.org.uk Go to the ‘parenting’ tab and select ‘feeding’ for a wide range of helpful articlesthebabycafe.org Our site for all things Baby Café!breastfeedinginc.caThe website of Canadian breastfeeding expert Dr Jack Newman. Useful videos and linksisisonline.org.ukInfant Sleep Information Source - with up-to-date, evidence-based information on all aspects of baby and toddler sleep

Ring ring… Breastfeeding helpline numbersNCT Support Line 0300 330 0700National Breastfeeding Helpline 0300 100 0212Breastfeeding Network Supporterline 0300 100 0210Drugs In Breastmilk Helpline 0844 412 4665La Leche League Helpline 0845 120 2918

DES822

Baby Café Annual Report

50 Baby Cafés in the UK

81% of women had breastfed for as long as they intended to

6300 women supported during 2016

75% of women said Baby

Café helped them to breastfeed

for longer

From: Baby Café Annual Report 2016

What women value: confi dence, continuity,

welcoming, care, expertise, listening, social

support, individuality