Infant Feeding Midwife

Epsom And St Helier University Hospitals Nhs Trust; Epsom and Ewell; On-site; GBP 38,000 - 44,000; Full time

Job summary

Epsom and St Helier University Hospitals NHS Trust is seeking a Band 6 Midwife to join the Infant Feeding Team. The role involves promoting Trust infant feeding practices and maintaining the UNICEF UK Baby Friendly Initiative Gold status across sites, with education and clinical supervision for staff.

The post requires autonomous practice, collaboration with breastfeeding networks, and running audits to improve infant feeding care aligned to NHS Long Term Plan and public health goals.

Qualifications

• Essential: Band 6 registered Midwife with UK NMC Pin and ongoing professional development
• Desirable: BFI 2‑day course; BFI trainer course; IBCLC accreditation
• Experience: Band 6 midwife with UNICEF Baby Friendly Standards experience
• Skills: excellent clinical midwifery skills and strong communication

Responsibilities

• Work with IFLs to embed new ideas and best practices in direct clinical care for mothers and babies
• Act as autonomous midwifery practitioner and liaison to breastfeeding support networks
• Conduct and use Baby Friendly Initiative audits to improve infant feeding practices in maternity services
• Facilitate group sessions for families in pregnancy and postnatal periods
• Provide evidence-based information to support women feeding their babies
• Develop and review feeding plans and maintain accurate maternity notes records
• Deliver antenatal education on infant feeding and relationship building in hospital and community settings
• Provide telephone breastfeeding support post-discharge and cover infant feeding phone lines
• Maintain UNICEF Baby Friendly Initiative standards at Epsom & St Helier NHS Trust
• Collaborate with colleagues to enable midwifery-led assessments of mothers and babies

Skills

Infant feeding expertise

Clinical midwifery

Communication skills

Audit & governance

Education & supervision

Education

NMC Pin

BFI training (Desirable)

Tools

Badgernet

CERNER

Job description

Job summary

An exciting opportunity has arisen for a passionate and dedicated band 6 Midwife to join the Infant Feeding Team at Epsom and St Helier! Working cross-site, the post holder will promote and support the Trust infant feeding practices, adhering to the blended infant feeding guidelines and wider Trust guidelines related to infant feeding and responsive parenting. The primary responsibility of the post holder is to ensure the complete implementation and maintenance of the UNICEF UK Baby Friendly Initiative (BFI) standards, thereby ensuring the preservation and retention of the Trust BFI Gold Award status. The post holder will be a recognised specialised professional with advanced knowledge in infant feeding and will serve as a valuable source of information and support for colleagues and parents. The role involves the provision of education and clinical supervision to assist staff in implementing evidence-based approaches to infant feeding and relationship building. It aims to align with the government health promotion agenda and the NHS Long Term Plan vision for the Baby Friendly Initiative and to maintain the Trust's BFI Gold status. Establishing and maintaining a visible presence in the clinical setting is crucial.

Main duties of the job

• To work closely with the IFL'S to initiate and embed new ideas, practices and approaches to direct clinical care of mothers and babies


• To work as an autonomous midwifery practitioner and provide an effective link to the wider networks for breastfeeding support


• To undertake clinical audit using appropriate Baby Friendly Initiative audit tools to evaluate and develop infant feeding practices with maternity services.


• To facilitate group sessions for families both in pregnancy and the postnatal period


• Support women in feeding their babies using evidence-based information, in line with the Trust Infant Feeding Policy


• Instigate & implement feeding management plans where required and review.


• Ensure accurate record keeping is kept on the Maternity notes system


• Participate in and facilitate antenatal education related to infant feeding and relationship building, both in hospital and community settings, including 1-1 with parents.


• Provide telephone breastfeeding support for women following discharge


• Covering as required the Infant feeding phone calls and action as required.


• Support the Maintaining and sustainability of the UNICEF Baby Friendly Initiative standards at Epsom & St Helier NHS Trust


• To work with colleagues and enable them to undertake midwifery led assessment of mothers and babies' needs

Qualifications

• Essential: Band 6 registered Midwife with UK NMC Pin; evidence of ongoing professional development and training; mentorship/SSSA


• Desirable: Completion of BFI 2 day Breastfeeding and relationship management course; completion of BFI train the trainer course; IBCLC accredited lactation consultant

Experience

• Essential: Experience working as a Band 6 midwife; demonstrate experience in Infant feeding and UNICEF Baby Friendly Standards


• Desirable: Experience in support in an infant feeding role; experience in teaching parent education regarding infant feeding; demonstrate experience of change management

Skills and Knowledge

• Essential: Excellent clinical midwifery skills; skilled practitioner in Infant feeding; excellent communication and interpersonal skills; willingness to undertake training on appointment for any skills in which not already competent; understanding of the current public health agenda in relation to infant feeding


• Desirable: Experience using electronic patient record systems (e.g. Badgernet, CERNER)

Employer contact details

Infant feeding Lead midwife: Sue Taylor, [e-mail], 07880002410

Location

Epsom/St Helier hospitals, Dorking Road/Wrythe Lane, Epsom/Carshalton, KT18 7EG