Best Beginnings is a charity dedicated to ending child health inequalities in the UK.

Best Beginnings was set up as a charity in 2006 as a catalyst for change, using innovative approaches to break down inequalities in child health in the UK. Many of Britain’s babies are born in challenging circumstances and are disproportionately prone to a number of problems including being born prematurely, suffering serious illnesses, developmental disorders and deaths in early infancy. The nationwide gap is huge; for instance, the infant mortality rate in Birmingham is more than 6 times greater than in Eastleigh in Hampshire

The initial focus of Best Beginnings is breastfeeding as a powerful tool to break down health inequalities in children. But we are not a breastfeeding charity—moving forward we will work in other areas too;

Our vision is of a future where all children enjoy best practice healthcare from conception, and where families have the information and support needed to protect their children’s health and avoid preventable illnesses and deaths.
We:

• Create dynamic, evidence-based resources, interventions and events for children, families and healthcare professionals, with a particular focus on engaging communities and groups experiencing the worst inequalities.
• Change and challenge attitudes and behaviours by overcoming the prejudices and misconceptions that
  foster inequalities in health care.
• Work collaboratively with health professionals, other charities and policy makers to ensure evidence-based information, support and high quality services are available for all.

Working across the key spheres of health inequalities in the UK, Best Beginnings was registered as a charity (1120054) in 2007.

Best Beginnings has the credibility, confidence and ambition to deliver new and pioneering approaches to improve children’s health. We have big plans for the future, including developing innovative solutions to help tackle the rise in Vitamin D deficiency, which can lead to bone and growth deformities (rickets), particularly in babies from Black and Minority Ethnic communities. Vitamin D deficiency can lead to low calcium levels, which can cause babies to have fits and difficulty walking. Other key health areas that need addressing include smoking during pregnancy, foetal alcohol syndrome and encouraging healthy weaning. Click on the image to see a visual map of some of the areas we plan to work on moving forward, when full funding is in place.

Best Beginnings made breastfeeding its primary focus for its first three years. The health benefits of breastfeeding for mother and child are huge. For example, a breastfed baby is five times less likely to end up in hospital with gastroenteritis and is protected against obesity, diabetes and some cancers. Breastfeeding is a natural safety net against the worst effects of child poverty and yet, despite government and WHO recommendations, less than 2% of UK mothers exclusively breastfeed to 6 months. 9 out of 10 women who have stopped breastfeeding before 6 months wished they could have carried on for longer. Many say they stopped because of a lack of information and support. From Autumn 2008, thanks to funding from all four UK nations, every pregnant woman in the UK, all 600,000 of them, will receive a copy of our free DVD “From Bump to Breastfeeding: following real mothers’ stories to find out how.” The DVD will be given out by midwives and can be viewed in 7 community languages. It motivates and enables the next generation of mothers to make a supported choice to breastfeed by following the stories of nine real mothers from different backgrounds. It is entertaining and gives really useful information in an approachable way - information that may make all the difference. We are also planning films that will empower and enable parents of special babies and premature babies to take a pivotal role in their baby’s care.

When only four weeks old Best Beginnings formed and led a coalition of more than 35 organisations, including five Royal Colleges and UNICEF, to lobby for the implementation of the Breastfeeding Manifesto. The Manifesto has successfully begun to open doors and the minds of key policy makers in Whitehall. So far, our campaign has secured support of over 250 MPs from all parties and led to promise from the Government to safeguard a woman’s right to breastfeed in public throughout England and Wales.

Getting the UK governments to act and honour their international commitments will help us achieve our mission. But without changing minds at community and family levels lasting change simply won’t happen. This is why we commissioned research into public attitudes to breastfeeding and why we are taking a multi-dimensional approach to infant feeding.

For significant and lasting change, what we need is nothing less than a cultural shift. BB will ensure what’s best for baby on paper becomes a reality.