After your baby is born, you will receive support from a team of nurses and midwives, until your child reaches five years and starts school.
Start for Life
We have made it easy for everyone to access free health and community services to help their baby, infant and child get the best start for life at Hackney’s Children and Family Hubs.
- Start for Life website
- Sign up to Start for Life weekly emails
- Find your local Children and Family Hub or Children’s Centre
Your child’s journey from birth to five
You can get local help, information and activities tailored to every age and stage of your child’s development, from birth up to 5 years.
Health visiting
The Health Visiting Team is led by the Health Visitor and includes nursery nurses and public health nurses, all with specialist training in family and public health.
The team offers support and advice from pregnancy until your child is five years old, based on personalised assessment of the family’s needs. This may include connecting you to other specialists such as psychologists or speech and language therapists.
Infant feeding
We work in partnership with a range of services to deliver a blended offer of advice and support that will help parents understand the benefits of breastfeeding and meet their infant feeding goals.
Fathers, co-parents and carers can also receive support to ensure they are included and feel confident in supporting their partner.
Our health partners and Children and Family Hub team is trained to the UNICEF Baby Friendly Initiative Standards which aims to:
- Support pregnant women with information about feeding and caring for their baby and developing close and loving relationships from pregnancy onwards
- Enable prolonged breastfeeding
- Support mothers to make informed decisions about introducing non-breastmilk foods and fluids
- Support close and loving parent-baby relationships
You can also get free equipment hire and personalised assistance on infant feeding, hunger cues, starting solids and weaning from our Children and Family Hubs.
- Information about free infant feeding support at Children and Family Hubs
Further advice:
24/7 AI powered infant feeding companion
Access round-the-clock, personalised breastfeeding support with the Anya app. The AI-powered companion and 1:1 specialist chat provides guidance anytime, anywhere - especially during those late-night feedings.
Download the Anya app from your app store and complete the registration using your Hackney postcode.
Mental health services
You can access support for common problems with your child’s emotional wellbeing, relationships and behaviour.
Baby Steps
Baby Steps is part of First Steps, Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS).
The team supports parents of infants under two to form positive early relationships and promote good mental wellbeing. They also support expectant parents as they prepare for parenthood.
The team is available if you are feeling overwhelmed, experiencing a dip in confidence, or struggling with the adjustment and new responsibilities of parenthood. They can also help if you are having challenging feelings about yourself, your partner or even your baby at times.
If you would like to speak with someone 1-to-1 about any aspect of parenting a baby or the emotional impact of becoming a parent, please get in touch by calling the Baby Steps team at:
- Linden and Woodberry Down Children and Family Hubs
Hannah 07436 049302
Cecilia 07464 536507
- Anne Tayler and Daubeney Children and Family Hubs
Emma 07951 683823
Sorcha 07385 418857
You can also contact the Baby Steps team at huh-tr.FirstSteps@nhs.net or book a slot at a drop in session at one of our Children and Family Hubs.
View the Baby Steps postcard