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Together we can build an amazing online family here on this site. Whether you are expecting your first child, a parent, student, midwife or simply interested in our work, the first step is to sign up today. It's quick, and free. Simply click here to create your account.

 

 

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Our forum is the place to discuss...well, anything related to child health. We want you to make yourself at home. If what you want to talk about isn't on the forum, why not start a new topic. You can browse the forum without being a member of this site, but to write a post you need to log in! Go to the forum now.

 

Join us
the many ways to help
Click here to go straight to three easy ways to donate or read on to find out why we urgently need your help.

Here at Best Beginnings we are enormously proud of what we’ve achieved in a staggeringly short timeframe: from creating a DVD free for every pregnant woman in the UK, to taking a touring art exhibition around Britain, to making a real difference at parliamentary level… these are all big projects and many of our supporters understandably make the assumption that we are a large, well-resourced charity. Well, let’s hope we can get there one day. Do you want the truth? We are a tiny, committed team of only four – with only one full time member of staff and we only moved into our ‘shoebox’ office in August 2008. In truth we are punching above our weight and we have only been able to do so thanks to some vital ingredients.

  • We have an amazing, expert and committed board of trustees
  • We have captured the interest of a great number of truly dedicated health professionals who have given their time for free to help us create wonderful resources for UK families
  • We have won the trust and financial backing of UK governments for our major project – the Bump to Breastfeeding DVD happened thanks to funding from all four UK nations and the Tedworth charitable trust
  • We have managed to win the generous support of a small number of trusts and individuals who have given us one off donations
  • We inspired some wonderful people to get on their bikes and join Alison on a sponsored bike ride to raise over £18k for our charity
Yet we are sorely missing a key ingredient in our mix…..your regular support.
You see, we have been doggedly persistent and lucky to be on the receiving end of some generous one-off donations, but as a small charity riding out the current tough economic seas, the one thing we need above all others is stability and security. We need a regular income. And that means asking people like you to commit to us for the sake of the health of all babies born in the UK. We are not asking for grand gestures. We understand that most of us are having to tighten our belts at the moment. But as a charity, we won’t be around much longer to create the next powerful DVD resource without the generosity of people like you.

Can you spare £3, the price of a coffee and cake, once a month? Or are you able to pledge us £9 per month to represent the nine out of ten women who say they gave up breastfeeding before they wanted to? Or £14 to represent the fact that only 14 percent of babies of school leavers are receiving any breastmilk at all by the time they are six weeks old? Whatever you can give will help.

premature baby

 

If 4600 people like you were to pledge us just £9 per month over the next year, we would reach our target of £500,000 for our First Steps Appeal, enabling us to meet our operating and project costs and produce the next DVD aimed at empowering parents of Britain’s sickest and tiniest babies. So what do you say? Could this be the greatest gift you’ll give this year?

We think so.

There are three easy ways to give to Best Beginnings now.
  1. donate securely with justgiving Set up a regular monthly donation of your choice, by clicking on this JustGiving button and select 'monthly' from the drop down box. Either enter the amount you want to give in the ‘other’ box or choose one of the amounts shown.

  2. Set up a standing order directly with your bank, by clicking here to download a bank standing order mandate to print out, fill in and post back.

  3. donate securely with justgivingGive a one-off donation to our First Steps Appeal, by clicking on this JustGiving button and going through to our appeal page.

Please note: If you are giving through JustGiving please don't forget to select the 'giftaid' option if you are a UK taxpayer: we get 28% extra on top of your donation at no extra cost to you! Justgiving is completely secure, and you can use your credit or debit card. You can remain anonymous if you'd prefer, but of course we'd love you to provide your name and email so we can keep you updated on our progress.

 

In addition to donating directly to Best Beginnings you can:
  • shop with our partners and raise more money for best beginningsShop and Give: by shopping with our partners you can help us raise more money.

 

 

 

 

  • Do a sponsored activity. You might like to run a 10k, cycle to Brighton, or follow-through on a New Years Resolution to, for example, stop smoking. Email This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it if you would like to find out more about doing a sponsored event for Best Beginnings.
  • Volunteer your time and expertise. Email This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it if you’d like to find out more about volunteering for Best Beginnings.
  • Introduce us to people or companies who might like to support our work eg: through Payroll Giving. Email This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it to discuss this possibility.

Watch a clip from our short film 'feeding your sick or premature baby' to see just how valuable this kind of resource is...