Job summary
- Main area
- Maternity Support Worker Infant Feeding
- Grade
- NHS AfC: Band 4
- Contract
- Permanent: Will involve working some weekends
- Hours
- Part time
- Flexible working
- Compressed hours
- Job ref
- 289-SC-2150
- Employer
- Chelsea and Westminster Hospital NHS Foundation Trust
- Employer type
- NHS
- Site
- Queen Mary Maternity Unit, West Middlesex University Hospital
- Town
- Isleworth
- Salary
- £29,460 - £31,909 per annum incl. HCAS
- Salary period
- Yearly
- Closing
- 22/05/2024 23:59
Employer heading
Infant Feeding Support Worker Maternity
NHS AfC: Band 4
About our Trust
Chelsea and Westminster Hospital NHS Foundation Trust is proud to be one of the top performing and safest trusts in England. We have two main acute hospital sites—Chelsea and Westminster Hospital and West Middlesex University Hospital, plus our award-winning clinics across North West London and beyond.
Our nearly 7,000 members of staff are proud to care for a diverse population of 1.5 million from the beginning to the end of life. Both hospitals provide full clinical services, including maternity, emergency and children’s, in addition to a range of community-based services across London, including our award-winning sexual health and HIV clinics.
We’re one of the safest and best performing Trusts in the country. We’re also one of the top trusts to work for—our staff say they’re engaged, motivated, and would recommend us as a place to work and receive treatment.
Our Trust has been rated by the Care Quality Commission as ‘Good’ in the domains of safe, effective, caring and responsive, and 'Outstanding' in the domains of well-led and use of resources.
Our facilities are among the best in the country. We invest around £10m a year in our estate and have recently completed a £30m expansion of our adult and neonatal critical care facilities at Chelsea and Westminster. Works commence in spring 2024 on an ambitious £80m development of an Ambulatory Diagnostics Centre at our West Middlesex site.
Applications are welcomed from applicants who wish to apply for the position on the basis of a smarter or flexible working arrangement. Where candidates are successful at interview, such requests will be taken under consideration and accommodated where the needs of the service allow. As a flexible working friendly organisation, we want to be sure that you can work in a way that is best for us and for our patients, and for you.
Job overview
The post holder will work in the Infant Feeding Team in West Middlesex Maternity Service and the local community services, to promote close mother baby relationships for the families and support infant feeding /breastfeeding. This post will encourage families to access services close to home that will support the feeding and parenting journey. It offers the opportunity for the post holder to have continuity from antenatal engagement through the feeding journey, building supportive networks within the population.
This exciting job opportunity is a collaborative role between the Queen Mary Maternity department at West Middlesex hospital and the Public Health Team at Hounslow Borough Council.
This is an exciting role which will provide a seamless service promoting antenatal preparation in relation to feeding, understanding and caring for a baby in the postnatal period.
Main duties of the job
You will be a champion in the area you work in promoting the wide range of activities and services that are available to support parents in their journey to maximise the health outcomes for them and their baby. This role is a specialised feeding post and as such will also support the growth and development of colleagues and students who are also caring for families too.
This is a dynamic post within the Infant Feeding team and each day will be different, sometimes working directly alongside colleagues in the maternity department but also working independently facilitating workshops and groups within children centres in the community on others.
Working for our organisation
Chelsea and Westminster Hospital NHS Foundation Trust is proud to be one of the top performing and safest trusts in England. We have two main acute hospital sites—Chelsea and Westminster Hospital and West Middlesex University Hospital, plus our award-winning clinics across North West London and beyond.
We have nearly 7,000 members of staff that are PROUD to Care for nearly one million people. Both hospitals provide full clinical services, including full maternity, emergency and children’s, in addition to a range of community-based services across London, such as award-winning sexual health and HIV clinics.
We’re one of the best performing Trusts in the country. We’re also one of the top trusts to work for – our staff says they’re engaged, motivated, and would recommend us as a place to work and receive treatment.
Our Trust has been rated by the Care Quality Commission as ‘Good’ in all five of the main domains of safe, effective, caring, responsive and well-led, giving an us overall rating of ‘Good’. We’ve also been awarded an ‘Outstanding’ rating for ‘use of resources’ by an NHS Improvement inspection.
Our facilities are some of the best in the country. We have been investing significant Capital year on year in our estate. We have recently completed a £30m expansion of our adult and neonatal critical care facilities at Chelsea and Westminster and are planning an ambitious £60m development of an Ambulatory Diagnostics Centre at West Middlesex.
Detailed job description and main responsibilities
Roles and responsibilities
- Ensure teaching and parent information resources are stocked up, available and accessible for staff to use, in all clinical areas of maternity.
- Organise, promote and deliver 2 hour group antenatal workshops on breastfeeding and relationship building to pregnant women and their family/partners (group size up to 30 people) within the hospital and Children’s centres.
- Organise, promote and deliver 2 hour group antenatal workshops on ‘Early days with your baby’ to pregnant women and their family/partners (group size up to 30 people) within the hospital and Children’s centres.
- Facilitate teaching Antenatal colostrum collection, particularly to families with known risk factors for Hypoglycaemia- clinic and ward setting.
- Support parents who mix or formula feed with the information they need to feed their babies safely and responsively.
- Promoting the feeding service, identifying opportunities, and proactively suggesting ways to connect and engage with the local community Help prepare for, as well as participate and support with local and national promotional events (as appropriate) e.g Celebratory breastfeeding weeks.
- Encourage parents to engage with local health promotion activities, signposting parents to the most up to date information about local activities with their communities.
- Organise and deliver 30 min group postnatal workshops on breastfeeding and relationship building on the ward.
- Promote and facilitate postnatal feeding support groups, within the community and hospital setting Have the skills to assess for a tongue tie if felt it may be impeding feeding and refer to the appropriate service if required.
- Infant feeding support on postnatal ward whilst working alongside new staff members to support the implementation and embedding of best practice, ensure relevant documentation is completed.
- Provide infant feeding support to families of newborn babies on paediatric wards or other wards in the hospital and ensure relevant documentation is completed.
- Provide telephone advice on infant feeding and document as required.
- Refer to Infant Feeding Clinical Advisor or Infant Feeding Co-ordinator as appropriate for complex infant feeding issues beyond own knowledge or experience.
- Supporting the learning and development of Students and Infant Feeding Volunteers.
- Be aware of sources of infant feeding support external to the Trust (e.g National Breastfeeding Helpline, First Steps Nutrition Trust).
- Communicate with /refer to community midwives, health visitors and Infant Feeding leads from other trusts to ensure families receive the support they need based on their geographical location.
- Assist with Baby Friendly audits, including face to face, by telephone and documentation audits, after appropriate training.
- Facilitate service user feedback to evaluate the effectiveness of the service on a regular basis.
- Assess feeding and identify any problems, develop an appropriate plan of care with mother and document and communicate with the multidisciplinary team.
- Work collaboratively within the Infant Feeding Team to support the development of resource and service development.
Please see attached job description and person specification to this advert for further details.
Person specification
Education and training
Essential criteria
- A recognised training / qualification in breastfeeding support: BfN Registered Breastfeeding Helper / ABM Mother Supporter / NCT Level 4 Breastfeeding Counsellor course year 1
- Experience of 1:1 breastfeeding support face to face with mother of newborn
- Excellent communication skills
- Sensitive to families’ different needs
Desirable criteria
- BfN Registered Breastfeeding Supporter
Experience
Essential criteria
- Experience of 1:1 breastfeeding support face to face with mother of newborn babies
- Able to demonstrate a good understanding of the UNICEF UK Baby Friendly Initiative
- Experience of, or understanding of the principles of, teaching/leading groups (either antenatal or postnatal)
- Experience/understanding of community outreach /public health work
- Working with diverse ethnic and social community groups
- An understanding of the issues affecting young children and families in areas of disadvantage
Desirable criteria
- Experience of discussing/ supporting parents with information about safe and timely introduction of solid foods
- Participation in audit or research and/or UNICEF UK Baby Friendly Initiative audit process
Skills and knowledge
Essential criteria
- Excellent communication skills face to face, on telephone and in writing
- Excellent skills to support mothers to feed their baby safely and responsively (with breastmilk or formula
- Understanding of UNICEF UK Baby Friendly Initiative Maternity Standards
Desirable criteria
- Car driver and have access to a car
- Able to use Excel spreadsheet to present simple audit data
Employer certification / accreditation badges
Applicant requirements
This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975 (Amendment) (England and Wales) Order 2020 and it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service.
Documents to download
Further details / informal visits contact
- Name
- Katie Hotchkiss
- Job title
- Infant Feeding Co-ordinator
- Email address
- [email protected]
- Additional information
Gina Short
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