From 1-7 August we’re celebrating World Breastfeeding Week, an annual event which aims to raise awareness of breastfeeding and related issues around the globe, as well as tackling inequalities.

Breastfeeding carries with it a whole host of benefits for both mother and child including meeting all of a baby’s nutritional needs, protecting them from infections and diseases, lowering risks of breast cancer, ovarian cancer, osteoporosis, cardiovascular disease and obesity for the mother, and nurturing the bond between mother and baby, to name just a few.

The UK has one of the world’s lowest rates of exclusive breastfeeding at six months even though this is advised by both government and the World Health Organisation.

Did you know that at MTW we have our own expert team of Infant Feeding Specialists?

Meet Sally Sidhu, Infant Feeding Lead, who has worked for the NHS since 1984 and in Tunbridge Wells since 1995…

Sally’s first job was as a horse-riding instructor, but after falling and breaking her pelvis she became interested in working in health care. She qualified as a nurse in the 80’s and then took a gap year in Australia and Indonesia. When Sally returned to the UK she decided to train as a midwife.

After starting her midwifery career at another NHS trust, Sally worked as a community midwife covering the Edenbridge area. She developed a passion for providing woman and family-centred care, and educating parents to empower them to not only have a better birth experience, but give them confidence to follow their maternal/parenting instincts. Sally met so many parents who were unable to meet their breastfeeding goals over the years and she wanted to change that paradigm.

When the opportunity came about to step into the infant feeding specialist role, Sally was excited to accept the challenge, learning from other infant feeding specialists in the south east. She qualified as an International Board-Certified Lactation Consultant (IBCLC) in 2023.

An infant feeding specialist is usually someone who is qualified as a Lactation Consultant (IBCLC). This qualification can take up to a year to gain and it really helps if you are already a qualified nurse or midwife. The training gives in-depth knowledge to enable the specialist to help families with more complex feeing issues. It also enables the specialist to train infant feeding peer support volunteers to help parents on the maternity wards at MTW and in our newborn cafes at our birth centres. We are so grateful to our peer supporters who give their time freely to help new parents.

We asked Sally what she enjoys about her job and she told us… everything! From helping new families to achieve their feeding goals to working with and supporting staff to feel more empowered in their roles, or being involved with projects like our infant feeding cafes and working collaboratively with other teams and trusts to share knowledge.

Sally and the team will be marking World Breastfeeding Week at our infant feeding cafes in Maidstone and Crowborough with themed cakes and by sharing their expert knowledge with new parents, and for maternity staff they’ll be running quizzes and visiting areas to answer questions and test staff knowledge. Their aim is to get around as many areas and speak to as many people as possible to highlight the theme of World Breastfeeding Week this year which is ‘closing the gap’, which relates to inequities within the maternity services in general and specifically in breastfeeding.

If you’d like to know more, get in touch at mtw-tr.infant-feeding-specialists@nhs.net.