Question
Across the Borough the Breastfeeding Network oversee a number of infant feeding clinics, providing a vital service and support network to hundreds of new mothers and their families at a crucial time.
Once again however, the funding for this valuable service is in doubt. I raised this issue last year and a small amount of funding was subsequently provided for the clinics. However it was not enough. The funding only covered the supervision and training of current volunteers and there was no money to train new volunteers. Sadly, as a result, one of the infant feeding clinics has now closed completely. Another only meets monthly now, rather than weekly, and is also at risk of closure. It would be an absolute tragedy if the remaining clinics had to close and were no longer able to support our new mums and their babies.
While the service has already been cut back massively in recent years, the additional funding needed to enable these clinics to continue sustainably is just £6k a year. Once again I ask, will the Executive Member intervene to make sure that adequate funding is made available next year, to ensure the sustainability of these vital breastfeeding clinics?
Minutes:
Across the Borough the Breastfeeding Network oversee a number of infant feeding clinics, providing a vital service and support network to hundreds of new mothers and their families at a crucial time.
Once again however, the funding for this valuable service is in doubt. I raised this issue last year and a small amount of funding was subsequently provided for the clinics. However it was not enough. The funding only covered the supervision and training of current volunteers and there was no money to train new volunteers. Sadly, as a result, one of the infant feeding clinics has now closed completely. Another only meets monthly now, rather than weekly, and is also at risk of closure. It would be an absolute tragedy if the remaining clinics had to close and were no longer able to support our new mums and their babies.
While the service has already been cut back massively in recent years, the additional funding needed to enable these clinics to continue sustainably is just £6k a year. Once again I ask, will the Executive Member intervene to make sure that adequate funding is made available next year, to ensure the sustainability of these vital breastfeeding clinics?
Answer
WBC has always been very committed to the Breastfeeding Network. Up till 2018 the Breastfeeding Network was funded by Reading Borough Council, the CCG, West Berkshire Council and Wokingham. In 2018 the other three funders withdrew completely and funding for the BFN reduced by £50-60k per annum. WBC stood by the network and maintained its funding when everyone else withdrew because we believed the service was valued and well used within our community. However as a result of the withdrawal of funds the service was cut back.
In 2018 / 2019 funding was maintained to support 10 volunteers running eight drop in centres supported by a project lead and 30 hours of supervision. A local Facebook page was launched to publicise the BFN. However there was still a drop in numbers of parents supported and the project lead resigned at the end of 2018 as she had secured another job. The number of volunteers has also recently dropped from 10 to five due to natural churn.
All decisions regarding the BFN service delivery within Wokingham where made in partnership with the service provider. However, in a direct answer to your direct question, I can confirm that the Officers contacted the BFN two weeks ago to arrange a meeting that will take place on 28 January. There are two items for the meeting. One is to resolve the short-term funding problem. The second is to plan a long term sustainable future to make sure that this voluntary group has the support it needs.
Supplementary Question
I am pleased to hear a positive answer. These clinics are not taking any bookings after March because they are so concerned about this. The Executive Member will be aware of these issues already. The clinic that closed was in Finchampstead which is an area he knows well as he is a Councillor in that area. So my question would be: why did he not intervene sooner to support these services and support our new mums and their babies across the Borough?
Supplementary Answer
In answer to your question, I was not aware of the service in Finchampstead closing. I stand by what I said before. Basically, we are committed to supporting voluntary groups across the Borough. I recognise that you feel strongly about this one while other Members will be committed to other voluntary groups with a broad range of interests.
I would encourage any Member who has concerns about the funding of a voluntary group in their area to approach me or the Officers. Let us get round the table, sort it out and sort out a viable solution for them, rather than letting it get to the 11th hour. We are committed to this group. We will see it survive and prosper.