Skip to content

View navigation

Leeds service receives prestigious Unicef Gold Award

LEEDS-NHS-0-19-Services_2021_Joanne-Crawford-49

Leeds Community Healthcare NHS Trust’s Health Visiting Service, part of the 0-19 Public Health Integrated Nursing Service, has been re-awarded gold status by Unicef UK Baby Friendly Initiative (BFI) for the care it provides to pregnant women and families across Leeds. 

Working in partnership with Leeds City Council and Leeds Teaching Hospitals Trust, this is the third year that the service has been awarded gold status. Maintaining this status reflects the continuous high standards in Leeds.

Nigel Hodgkins, Head of the 0-19 Public Health Integrated Nursing Service, said: “Achieving the UNICEF BFI Gold Award is something I am immensely proud of, it is a testament to the dedication of our 0-19 Public Health Integrated Nursing Service (PHINS) colleagues and our partners alike. I believe this is a fitting acknowledgment of the quality of care and commitment to the breastfeeding agenda and support of early parenting in Leeds. We look forward to continuing our high standards of work, striving to continually improve and working hard to maintain our gold status.”

The UNICEF Baby Friendly Initiative (BFI) standards are designed to support infant feeding practice, as well as parent and infant relationships. BFI supports parents to have close and loving relationships with their baby and feed their baby in ways which will support optimum health and development.

Sally Goodwin-Mills, Advanced Health Improvement Specialist, Public Health, said:

“It is such an achievement for an organisation to achieve BFI Gold (achieving sustainability) at any time, however, pressures have been unprecedented during Covid-19 and practitioners have shown great tenacity and drive to continue to maintain such high standards in very challenging circumstances.

“I am privileged to work with passionate people, who have gone above and beyond to ensure that work has continued so that families have received the best possible care, support and information regarding infant feeding and parent-infant relationships.”

What to do if you need to speak to someone urgently...