Solihull Understanding your Baby
Understanding your baby’ is for everyone around a new baby: supporting you and the new arrival from birth to 12 months.
This FREE course gives you information about your baby's brain development and your baby's physical and emotional development. It shows how important your relationship with the baby is for the baby's development.
It integrates the traditional information given on a postnatal course with this new approach to developing your relationship with your baby. It looks at your baby’s sleeping, feeding, crying, playing and childcare options.
If you have already done the Solihull Approach antenatal course 'Understanding pregnancy' you may recognise some of the Units about feelings and support, You may want to think about this again, now you have your baby. If you are a Dad you may recognise parts of the Module for fathers, but you may want to look at the Units again.
The course has content you can trust. It was developed by Health Visitors working with health professionals including Clinical Psychologists in the Solihull Approach team.
Visit www.inourplace.co.uk and follow instructions to set up an account. Once you have created an account enter the access code: WOLSEY. Your account will remember your access to that course and resumes where you left off.
Health for Under 5's
The Health for Under 5's website provides useful information provided by health professionals that will help you to ensure your baby's health and wellbeing.
Mum & Baby App
Your personal NHS guide for pregnancy, birth and beyond.
Download on the App Store or Get it on Google Play.
Best beginnings
Resources that give parents the knowledge and confidence they need to look after their own mental and physical health and to maximise their child's development. Baby Buddy is a free app that guides you through pregnancy, birth, parenting and beyond.
Visit the Best Beginnings website.
Understanding you
Unfamiliar feelings of anxiety and depression can often develop suddenly and range from mild to extremely severe, requiring different kinds of support or treatment. It is normal for new parents to experience broken sleep, relationship changes and impaired physical health as a result of pregnancy and giving birth. Often new parents dismiss their symptoms as a result of these changes. Healthy Suffolk has a helpful web page with information, advice and guidance including a downloadable leaflet on baby blues.
Visit Healthy Suffolk information on maternal mental health.
Understanding baby
The Institute of Health Visiting has helpful factsheets to find expert advice on key areas of looking after your new baby, from when they are born to when they go to school.
Visit the Institute of Health Visiting website.
Infant Feeding
For information, advice and guidance on all aspects of feeding please see the separate drop down called Infant Feeding
Tommy's Pregnancy and post-birth digital wellbeing tool
To help look after yourself and be prepared for after the birth, Tommy's website enables you to create a Pregnancy and Post-birth Wellbeing Plan.
Public Health: Birth to Five Book
This book provides information on caring for children up to five years old and contact details for useful organisations - it is available in downloadable chapters.
Visit Public Health: Birth to Five.
NHS: Start4Life
Whatever you want to know about parenthood, from breastfeeding to when your baby will have their first vaccinations, you should find it here. We're here to give you the essential guide and lots of free tools for having a healthy, happy baby.
Visit the NHS Start4Life website.
UNICEF: Building a happy baby
Advice and information for parents on getting to know their baby and setting up the foundations for a close and loving relationship, with a downloadable leaflet.
Visit UNICEF: Building a happy baby.
Safer sleep
The Lullaby Trust safer sleep advice gives simple steps for how your baby should sleep to reduce the risk of sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS), which is more commonly known as cot death. The advice can give you the peace of mind to enjoy this special time.
Visit the The Lullaby Trust: Safer sleep advice.
UNICEF's caring for your baby at night and the Lullaby Trust safer sleep for babies leaflets are designed to provide you with helpful and practical advice on reducing the chances of sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) and coping at night. Here you will also find the latest guidance on smoking, bed sharing, night feeding, safe sleeping environments and helping baby to settle.
NHS: your new baby
Advice on all the essentials of baby care, including breastfeeding, infant feeding, changing nappies, and washing your baby.
Visit NHS: Your new baby.
Healthy Suffolk: children and young people
Information and advice services that are available in Suffolk.
Visit Healthy Suffolk advice services.
Healthy Suffolk: coping with crying
Babies don't have the words to tell us what they want, and sometimes knowing what to do can be tough. Public Health has released a guide which may help you to cope with crying.
Visit Healthy Suffolk: Keep Calm.
Umbilical granuloma
An umbilical granuloma is an overgrowth of tissue during the healing process of the belly button (umbilicus). It usually looks like a soft pink or red lump and often is wet or leaks small amounts of clear or yellow fluid. It is most common in the first few weeks of a baby's life.
Visit Institute of Health Visiting: understanding umbilical granuloma.
Newborn Jaundice
For information and overview of Newborn Jaundice visit NHS
Think 3 at 3 months
Tracking your baby’s movements, also known as motor developmental milestones, in the first few months of life is particularly important.
To find out what movements you can expect your baby to make by 3 months and where to go if you are worried visit Think 3 at 3 months
Workshop: Wellbeing - living well with baby
Are you finding that the role of being a parent is impacting on your wellbeing? This workshop looks at all the changes which happen during this time and explore how these changes can leave people stuck in a negative cycle. It also offers strategies on how to break this cycle in order to manage low mood and worry:
Living well with baby
Newborn Screening - Information Leaflets
These leaflets from Public Health England explain NHS newborn screening programme tests, possible results and follow up tests:
Newborn Screening: Information Leaflets
Health and Wellbeing - The First Few Years
This booklet created by Public Health Suffolk, which includes contributions from Midwifery, Health Visiting, Hospital & Community Paediatricians and nurses provides advice and guidance for parents of young children:
Health and wellbeing - the first few years
Sleep, Baby and You workshops
We are holding a series of informal workshops for expectant parents to access support and advice about what to expect regarding infant sleep. For more information please click on the link below:
Sleep, Baby and You workshops