Council awarded prestigious Gold Baby Friendly accreditation for supporting families

October 2, 2025

The Council has been officially awarded UNICEF UK’s Baby Friendly Gold accreditation, recognising the city’s commitment to giving babies and families the best possible start in life.

Southend’s Children, Young People and Families Public Health Service (CYP&FPH) has achieved UNICEF’s Baby Friendly Gold Award.

Gold status recognises long-term, sustainable improvements in infant feeding and parent–baby relationship support.

The award was given after a joint submission from the councils Health Visiting and Family Centre services.

The award is the highest level of recognition from UNICEF UK’s Baby Friendly Initiative. It highlights success in embedding infant feeding support and building a strong culture of care for parents and babies across Health Visiting and Family Centre services.

The service was assessed against four themes, leadership, culture, monitoring and progression, and met the required Gold standards in each area.

The report noted that:

“Southend-on-Sea City Council’s Southend Children, Young People & Families Public Health Service (CYP&FPHS) is highly commended for the quality of the evidence submitted and the thorough way in which the necessary processes to embed and further develop care related to the Baby Friendly standards has been planned and implemented.”

Cllr Maxine Sadza, cabinet member for Adult Social Care and Public Health, said: “This award is a huge achievement for Southend. Supporting infant feeding and parent–child relationships is a vital part of public health, helping to improve lifelong wellbeing. We are proud that our services are recognised nationally for putting families first, and I want to thank every member of staff who has helped make this possible.”

Cllr Laurie Burton, cabinet member for Children, Families and Education, added: “The Gold Award is a testament to the passion and dedication of our Family Centres and Health Visiting teams. From the very first days of a child’s life, families in Southend are receiving compassionate, practical support. This is about giving children the strongest start and creating a culture where families feel supported every step of the way.”

The assessment team also highlighted the strong results from staff surveys, showing a positive culture and high levels of motivation. Infant Feeding Leads were praised for their expertise and leadership, and the “Southend Supports Breastfeeding” (supported by Southend’s CVS - SAVS) programme was commended as a flagship scheme.