Hundreds sign petition to stop Peterborough Baby Café closing after funding cut

The free drop-in which offers information and support for pregnant and breastfeeding mums from qualified counsellors will close in Serpentine Green, Hampton, on April 16 after the city council reduced its contract with parent charity NCT.

The move has upset parents with one setting up a petition opposing the closure. It had received around 450 signatures in the first five days.

The Baby Café is run from the Tesco community room at the shopping centre and, according to the council, will see the qualified breastfeeding counsellors replaced by volunteer breastfeeding peer supporters - who undergo training - led by a trained leader.

The contract for NCT was £52,000 a year but has since been scaled back to £25,30000 a year, with the service now jointly funded and commissioned by the city council and Cambridgeshire County Council.

Trina Warman and Abigail Salehi from Serpentine Green Baby Café, who between them have more than 30 years of experience as breastfeeding counsellors, said in a joint statement: “We have been overwhelmed by the response from all the mothers we have supported through so many complex breastfeeding challenges.

“For our remaining sessions until April 16 we have committed to mums to both attend every week together sharing our facilitation fee to support mums and each other through this challenging time.”

The drop-in opened up in Serpentine Green six years ago having previously been operating in Stanground from 2011. During that time more than 1,000 families have received support.

Amy Ambrose, who has been attending the Baby Café regularly since she faced challenges with feeding her son Edward, has started a petition which has been signed by more than 450 supporters within five days.

Amy said: “I wouldn’t have carried on breastfeeding if it hadn’t been for the support from qualified breastfeeding counsellors at the Baby Café.

“Even if you don’t need this support right now, you may do in the future, as may your family or friends, so let’s not lose this wonderful resource.”

A spokesperson for Peterborough City Council said: “Peterborough City Council and Cambridgeshire County Council are committed to offering support for breastfeeding mothers across the area as we recognise this is one of the key ways we can support mums to help give their children the best start in life.

“Due to the success of our vital services in Peterborough we are now looking to extend these into Fenland. Our approach using breastfeeding peer support follows the guidance provided by the World Health Organisation and NICE, with strong evidence showing that this is a highly effective way to support mums who choose to breastfeed.

“We will be reviewing the location of these services, working closely with our commissioned partners NCT who will continue to bring their specialist knowledge to the area. We want to reassure local communities that we will be doing this to make sure we provide services at the right time in the right place for them.”

Amy’s petition can be signed at: https://www.change.org/p/helen-freeman-save-serpentine-green-baby-cafe.