Closed petition Fund fully trained lactation consultants on maternity wards

I would like the government to provide funding for fully trained lactation consultants to be present on maternity wards in order to support new mothers with feeding techniques and to check the new born for any feeding issues such as tongue tie as 1 in 10 suffer with this.

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Children are leaving hospital currently without having an oral assessment and tongue ties are being missed causing a lot of distress for new mums and their babies making breastfeeding difficult. The consultant being present on the ward would mean all babies could be checked prior to leaving hospital and providing extra support for new mums. Ultimately taking pressure off other services as a result of feeding issues not being picked up sooner.

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MPs report on safety of maternity services in England

On Monday 5 July the Health and Social Care Committee (a group of MPs who scrutinise the work of the Department of Health and Social Care) published a report that looked at safety of maternity services in England.

Read the full report: https://committees.parliament.uk/publications/6578/documents/71201/default/

The report finds that improvements in maternity services have been too slow, and recommends urgent action to address staffing shortfalls in maternity services.

Among its recommendations, the Committee has said that the Government should:

  • Introduce a target to end disparities in maternal and neonatal outcomes
  • Immediately increase the annual budget for maternity services by at least £200-350 million
  • Reform litigation to award compensation for maternity cases based on whether an incident was avoidable
  • Take urgent action to address staffing shortfalls in maternity services

The Government will respond to the Committee's report in the coming weeks.

The Committee has also published an evaluation of the Government’s progress against its policy commitments in the area of maternity services in England, which was produced by an Expert Panel selected by the Committee.

Read the Expert Panel's evaluation here: https://committees.parliament.uk/publications/6560/documents/71024/default/

What is the Health and Social Care Committee?

The Health and Social Care Committee scrutinises the work of the Department of Health and Social Care and its associated public bodies. It examines government policy, spending and administration on behalf of the electorate and the House of Commons. It's a cross-party committee and is independent of the Government.

Find out more on their website: https://committees.parliament.uk/committee/81/health-and-social-care-committee/

You can get updates on their work by following the Committee on Twitter:
https://twitter.com/CommonsHealth

This is a ‘select committee’. Find out how Select Committees work:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o_2RDuDs44c

Share your views and experiences of breastfeeding with MPs

On Tuesday 8 March, Alison Thewliss MP will lead a debate in Parliament on government support for breastfeeding.

To inform the debate, she wants to hear about your experiences and ideas.

  • What kinds of policies would have encouraged or supported you, your families or friends to breastfeed?

  • To what extent do you think advertising influences the decision to start, or continue, breastfeeding?

Alison may quote your contribution directly during her debate. 

Find out more and share your experiences: https://ukparliament.shorthandstories.com/cet-breastfeeding/index.html?utm_campaign=0322-cet-breastfeedingsupport-petitioners&utm_medium=email&utm_source=petcom

Videos of the debate, the transcript and other relevant material will be accessible shortly after the debate on this webpage. 

The deadline for contributions is midday on Monday 7 March.

What are Westminster Hall debates?  

Westminster Hall is the second Chamber of the House of Commons.   
Westminster Hall debates give MPs an opportunity to raise local or national issues and receive a response from a government minister. Any MP can take part in a Westminster Hall debate.  

Debates in Westminster Hall take place on ‘general debate' motions expressed in neutral terms. These motions are worded ‘That this House has considered [a specific matter]'. 

Get involved in the work of the UK Parliament

You can sign up to the UK Parliament newsletter for the latest information on how to get involved and make a difference: https://learning.parliament.uk/en/your-uk-parliament-newsletter-sign-up-form/

Information on support for parents and carers of infants: share your experiences

On Tuesday 12 March, MPs will debate the information on support available to parents and carers of infants. The debate will be led by Sally-Ann Hart MP.

She would like to hear from people who have recent experience as a parent or carer of an infant.

Specifically, she would like to understand what information they were given about services regarding:

  • breastfeeding and infant feeding
  • physical and mental health
  • parent-infant relationships.

She may quote your contribution directly during her debate.

Find out more and share your experiences with her by midday on Monday 11 March:

Information on support available for parents and carers of infants

Videos of the debate, the transcript of what was said, and other relevant material will be accessible shortly after the debate on this webpage.

What are Westminster Hall debates?

Westminster Hall is the second Chamber of the House of Commons.

Westminster Hall debates give MPs an opportunity to raise local or national issues and receive a response from a government minister. Any MP can take part in a Westminster Hall debate.

Debates in Westminster Hall take place on ‘general debate' motions expressed in neutral terms. These motions are worded ‘That this House has considered [a specific matter]'. This means that Westminster Hall debates don’t end in a vote on a particular action or decision.

Visual explainer: Westminster Hall debates