Charity supporting Peterborough and Fenland mothers to breastfeed funded for two more years

NCT, the UK’s largest charity for parents, has been awarded a further two year contract which will provide free support for women in Peterborough, Wisbech, March and the surrounding areas.

The project provides opportunities for mums to get the social support of others and receive information about breastfeeding from NCT peer supporters who are all local mothers themselves.

Mums will be able to find breastfeeding peer supporters at Peterborough City Hospital, community based breastfeeding support groups, NCT’s Bumps and Babies group in Peterborough and via the telephone. In 2019, they volunteered more 1,000 hours of their time and contacted almost 4,000 local mums.

The contract will run from April 2020 to March 2022 with a total investment of £104,000.

Julia Kiddle, manager at Peterborough Breastfeeding Support, said: “The first few weeks can be tough for new mums and one of the things they may need help with is breastfeeding. In areas where breastfeeding rates are low it’s even more important that there is somewhere supportive and friendly for mothers to go.

“We’re delighted that our project is being extended. It’s wonderful to get recognition for the positive impact we’ve had and we hope to help many more mums in the area over the next couple of years.”

The new public health contract has been awarded to NCT by Peterborough City Council in conjunction with Cambridgeshire County Council.

Raj Lakshman, public health consultant for Cambridgeshire County Council and Peterborough City Council, said: “We know that breastfeeding is both good for mum and baby in terms of health outcomes, and we are therefore committed to making sure where possible that all mums have the opportunity to breastfeed their babies if they choose to.

“This means providing services that mums can access at the right time, in the right place, with the right support. NCT has a great track record of delivering these kinds of services and we are excited to be working with them and the expertise they can bring to this area.”

To find out more about the project, visit https://www.facebook.com/PeterboroughBreastfeedingSupport/.

NCT trains 300 breastfeeding peer support volunteers a year who help mothers who want to breastfeed in a range of hospital and community settings across the UK, including those in lower socioeconomic areas.

There is also lots of information on the NCT website about breastfeeding and formula feeding, and a support line to help new parents with feeding.