18 July 2023
In a joint initiative between Government and Family Nursing and Home Care to make
Jersey more breastfeeding friendly, businesses are being asked to join the Jersey
Breastfeeds initiative and commit to offering baby changing facilities and comfortable
spaces for mothers to breastfeed their children.
The Jersey Breastfeeds initiative is being launched as part of Breastfeeding Awareness
week (1-7 August) and businesses that sign up in support of the initiative will receive
physical and digital assets to advertise themselves as breastfeeding friendly.
They are
also being encouraged to offer an incentive to mothers choosing to breastfeed their
baby at listed breast-feeding friendly businesses on Wednesday 2 August, which will
coincide with an event being held in the Royal Square.
Deputy Raluca Kovacs, Breastfeeding Guardian for Jersey, Chair of UNICEF Baby
Friendly Initiative Jersey and Deputy of St Saviour said: “I would really like businesses
to sign-up in support of this new initiative, which I am leading as Breastfeeding
Guardian for Jersey, in partnership with the Minister for Health and Social Services,
Family Nursing and Home Care, FNHC, Public Health and Health and Community
Services, HCS.
“We have a lot of businesses that already provide these facilities and understand the
value that new parents and families have as consumers, but for those parents looking
to find a welcoming location to comfortably feed or change their children, it can be
difficult to know where to go.
“Jersey holds levels of accreditation from the UNICEF Baby Friendly Initiative, BFI,
which is based on a set of interlinking standards for maternity, health visiting, neonatal
and children’s centres services. To be truly baby-friendly, I believe that the whole
Island has a role to play which is why we’ve launched the Jersey Breastfeeds initiative
and why I’m asking businesses to join us."
Debra Hennessy, BFI Breastfeeding Specialist Health Visitor, Family Nursing and Home
Care, and local lead for the UNICEF BFI said: “Parents want to give their babies the best
start in life and there are many benefits from breastfeeding for both mum and baby.
“For a new breastfeeding mother, having the support of family, friends and the wider
community can make a huge difference to their feeding journey and impact their choice to
continue to feed for the long term. Local businesses can play a pivotal role in making new
mums feel welcome, safe and supported to feed their babies when out and about. The
positive effect this has on maternal and infant mental health, as well as improved health
outcomes for the most vulnerable members of our community cannot be overstated.
“With both FNHC and HCS holding levels of accreditation from the UNICEF BFI we are
now able to provide more support than ever for parents who are able to and choose to
breastfeed.
“We know from the Births and Breastfeeding Profile 2022, which was published in
March, that 65% of mothers were breastfeeding at six to eight weeks after birth. This is
the highest recorded percentage between 2011 and 2022.
“I really believe that by spreading the Jersey Breastfeeds message, we can continue to
see an improvement in breastfeeding rates by providing early education, getting
breastfeeding off to a good start, supporting women to feed for as long as they wish
and working in partnership with the wider community providing welcoming, safe,
comfortable spaces.”
gov.je