Specialist Midwife for Infant Feeding

Walsall Healthcare NHS Trust; Walsall; On-site; GBP 35,000 - 45,000; Full time

Job summary

A healthcare organization in Walsall seeks a Specialist Midwife to enhance infant feeding practices and ensure high-quality care for mothers and babies. The role involves leading initiatives aligned with UNICEF UK's Baby Friendly Initiative, offering expertise in clinical care, and collaborating with multidisciplinary teams. Ideal candidates will have significant experience in midwifery, excellent communication skills, and the ability to support and develop team members. This position promises a vital contribution to maternal and infant health initiatives.

Qualifications

• Evidence of capability in managing complex clinical cases.
• Experience in training and supporting junior staff.
• Commitment to best practices in maternal and infant care.

Responsibilities

• Lead initiatives for infant feeding guidance and compliance.
• Coordinate midwifery care for all infant feeding methods.
• Monitor and evaluate care pathways for mothers and babies.

Skills

Clinical expertise in infant feeding

Interpersonal and communication skills

Leadership and mentoring abilities

Management of child protection issues

Education

Registered Midwife qualification

Job description

Specialist Midwife – Infant feeding & Baby Friendly Initiative

This is a key role in developing and maintaining high standards of care for this group of women and their families in pregnancy and the postnatal period. You will have a high level of relevant expert knowledge and skills which you will use to manage, develop and lead care for all pregnant and new mothers regardless of feeding method.

The specialist midwife will work in collaboration with multi-disciplinary teams and external agencies including maternity, paediatrics, NNU, gynaecology, obstetrics, CPD training teams and the health visiting (HCP 0-5yrs) service. The practitioner should be an expert in their field, have responsibility to ensure that all care delivered is within accordance of trust policies and procedures, NICE and BFI UNICEF UK guidance. The specialist midwife will ensure that generic practitioners at all levels receive the appropriate support for infant feeding care planning and practice development, working alongside other staff to add capability to staff practices.

The specialist midwife will be responsible for the leadership and coordination of both the Maternity and Neonatal UNICEF UK Baby Friendly Initiatives, training, audit and development of effective infant feeding/antenatal infant feeding initiatives within WHT, and, in partnership with other professionals to support these activities.

PLEASE NOTE, WE MAY CLOSE THIS VACANCY EARLY IF WE RECEIVE A HIGH NUMBERS OF APPLICATIONS

Clinical Responsibilities

• Audit, valuate and improve midwifery care for mothers and babies.
• Provide clinical expertise, support and professional direction to both Midwifery and Medical staff on the care in relation to responsive feeding and parenting for all women and babies.
• Prioritize and develop care pathways to reflect women and babies feeding journeys based on need following risk assessment.
• Facilitate antenatal and post‑natal care plans within the hospital/community environment.
• Analyse and evaluate the effectiveness of midwifery care pathway, giving professional support and advice as required.
• Maintain accurate and legible records/documentation in accordance with Trust and national professional policies and guidelines.
• Use expert interpersonal and communication skills when dealing with issues such as child protection, sexual health matters, domestic violence, drug and alcohol misuse and mental health issues.
• Effectively communicate complex and sensitive condition‑related information to clients and relatives requiring empathy and reassurance.
• Use counselling skills dealing with issues relating to parenting journeys.
• Participate in programmes of parent and staff education for women in relation to infant feeding and responsive parenting within the hospital/community setting.
• Keep up to date and act consistently within quality standards and guidelines within own clinical area and associated areas.
• Continuously monitor and evaluate the quality of work against quality standards in own area and take effective action to address them.

Leadership and Management Responsibilities

• Ensure that the day-to-day service delivered meets the service needs.
• Promote best practice in health, safety and security.
• Monitor and maintain efficient use of physical and/or financial resources, reporting any deviations to the community midwife manager promptly.
• Liaise with the multidisciplinary team and multi‑agencies, co‑ordinating and participating in case discussions as required.
• Ensure that the service is a positive learning experience for students and junior staff and meets the necessary standards for placement.
• Identify and manage challenging behaviours as directed by trust policies.
• Recognise, communicate and reward the achievements of staff in a learning capacity and provide constructive feedback, advice and ongoing practice.
• Provide professional leadership and support to colleagues.
• Participate in on‑call Maternity management rota.
• Lead and develop the implementation of care pathways for vulnerable women and babies.
• Ensure that essential information on the client’s condition and progress is recorded appropriately according to NMC guidelines.
• Monitor progress of work recognising changing priorities and implement corrective actions within own limits and informing the relevant people.
• Act as a mentor and assessor to assigned learners and support them through their competency assessments as required.
• Lead in the appraisal process for a defined group of staff in accordance with trust policies.
• Communicate clearly with colleagues and provide them with opportunities to contribute to the planning and organisation of work.
• Deal personally with clients, families and carers to aid resolution of complaints.
• Report incidents, complaints or accidents to the Matron and assist in their investigation and resolution.
• Monitor and manage sickness and absence in accordance with trust policies.
• Have active involvement in the recruitment and selection process.
• Monitor, control and store resources/supplies according to the requirements and specifications of the clinical environment.
• Maintain own vehicle to comply with road safety legislation and ensure provision of care in the community in all weather conditions.
• Maintain accurate records of resource use, e.g., personal expenses, team member’s expenses related to pay, mileage and on‑call.
• Implement and propose changes to policies/practices in own area.
• Participate effectively in evaluation studies (e.g., patient satisfaction surveys and audit).

Additional Responsibilities

• Identify and take action in accordance with trust policy where necessary to address discrimination and oppression.
• Monitor and maintain health, safety and security of self and others in own work area, adhering to lone worker policy.
• Take immediate and appropriate action, including supporting others to manage risks in relation to adverse incident reporting via the hospital incident reporting system.
• Identify training needs in health and safety whilst identifying appropriate resources.
• Have a flexible approach to care delivery, providing services in keeping with the demands in a hospital/community setting.

This advert closes on Friday 6 Feb 2026