Feeding and nurturing your baby
We are very proud that Chelsea and Westminster Hospital has been a Baby Friendly hospital since 2013. West Middlesex University Hospital was the first London hospital to receive UNICEF Baby Friendly accreditation for our standard of care (reaccreditation pending). This accreditation indicates that we meet best practice standards to support breastfeeding and close parent-infant relationships.
We want to ensure that all parents are enabled to make informed decisions about feeding their babies and are supported and encouraged in their chosen feeding method.
Your antenatal midwife will discuss your thoughts and feelings around looking after and feeding your baby, give you some basic information to help you make informed choices, and get breastfeeding off to a good start.
Antenatal breastfeeding workshops for families at our hospitals can help you feel more confident about breastfeeding your baby and understand how to avoid or solve common breastfeeding problems.
In hospital, staff including midwives, nurses, maternity support workers and breastfeeding peer support volunteers, will help you learn how to put your baby to your breast, hand express your milk and how to tell if breastfeeding is going well. If you choose to bottlefeed, they will teach you how to bottlefeed as safely as possible.
Your community midwife will visit you at home or contact you by telephone to assess how well your baby is feeding and support you with any difficulties.
Your health visitor will see you at home after the birth and continue to review your child’s development at a child health clinic. They will give ongoing support with infant feeding, starting solids from six months and going back to work.
Some parents want additional support with feeding after they have gone home from hospital.
Building a loving relationship with your new baby will give them the best possible start in life and help them to grow up happy and confident. The leaflet Building a happy baby: A guide for parents and the video Breastfeeding and relationships in the early days discuss getting to know your baby and setting up the foundations for a strong relationship. Cuddling and comforting your baby releases love hormones and this helps your baby’s brain to develop.
Contact us
If you have questions or concerns in relation to feeding your baby, please get in touch.
Infant Feeding Team Chelsea
E: chelwest.infantfeeding@nhs.net
T: 020 3315 3017
Infant Feeding Team West Middlesex
E: chelwest.infantfeedingteam.wmuh@nhs.net
T: 020 8321 5006
Tongue Tie Clinic Chelsea
E: caw-tr.tonguetie@nhs.net
Tongue Tie Clinic West Middlesex
E: TongueTie.WMUH@nhs.net