Health Visiting Service for Rhondda and Taff

Talk & Play

Let’s start 2024, be kind to yourselves. Take a look 👇

Starting the year as we mean to go on 🫶

Baby shower 👶👶

🤰👶We are delighted to announce that our next FREE Antenatal Baby Shower event for new families and parents-to-be will be hosted by maternity and health visiting teams at Rhondda Sports Centre.

Please note this is available to all families who live across the Cwm Taf Morgannwg University Health Board localities.

The event will include talks from our midwives about labour and birth, advice on feeding your baby and baby massage demonstrations.

Refreshments and a free raffle prize draw will be included.

The event is run by the CTM Early Years Transformation Programme in partnership with CTMUHB.

Safe sleep 😴 advice for your baby 🧸

⚠️ 0-6mth sleeping bags aren’t always suitable for newborns⚠️ Many sleep bags have a minimum weight (around 4kg/9lb) that a baby should be before use. However, this recommendation isn’t always displayed clearly in shops or online, so make sure you check the manufacturer’s recommendations before purchasing and check that it fits your baby well.

Check it out 🧸🖍️✏️📚

Funded Childcare in Wales Check Your Eligibility

To apply for the Childcare Offer for Wales, you’ll need a few documents to hand:

➡️Your child’s birth certificate
➡️Proof of address
➡️Proof of household income or enrolment on HE/FE course

Visit https://gov.wales/childcare-offer-for-wales-campaign

Or call our national helpline on 03000 628 628📞

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Whether you're reading a story, talking about pictures, or making up your own adventure, there's no limits to where your child's imagination can go ❤️

🏃‍♀️🏃‍♂️🏃🏻

Healthy snacks for your child 🍌🍐🥕🥑

Important information 👩‍🍼👩‍🍼🍼🍼

A new paper on the safety of powdered infant formula preparation was published today. It reported the findings of a collaborative study, including First Steps. It confirmed our long-held concerns that, despite their marketing claims, formula preparation devices commonly used by UK parents often do not deliver water hot enough (i.e. at least 70˚C) to kill any bacteria that may be in the powdered infant formula.

Around half of the 143 parents (74 people) who participated in the study used formula preparation machines, while the remaining 69 used kettles. 85% of the 74 infant formula preparation machines tested did not produce water hot enough to kill all harmful bacteria in infant formula, which could pose a severe risk to infant health.

We call for infant formula labelling requirements to be updated to align with NHS and WHO guidance by displaying information that powdered infant formula is not sterile, the optimal water temperature, and the risks of not using sufficiently hot water while also stating the importance of hand washing and routinely sterilising feeding equipment. Following UNICEF Baby Friendly Initiative guidance, we also recommend sharing these public health messages during antenatal and postnatal infant feeding support. Finally, we advise that bacterial gastrointestinal infections in infants should be mapped to batches of infant formula and preparation equipment to provide information to inform measures to improve the safety of formula feeding practices.

The FSA have advised parents/carers to check that the temperature of the water used to prepare infant formula is at least 70˚C and that if that is not the case for those using an infant formula preparation machine, they should contact the manufacturer and their local Trading Standards Department or Citizens Advice. The Office for Product Safety and Standards is undertaking additional tests on the devices.

Sofas are a dangerous place to sleep ⚠️⚠️⚠️

Being a new parent is exhausting and it can be easy to fall asleep on the sofa with your newborn. But sofas are a dangerous place for sleeping babies.

So, if you’re on a sofa or armchair with your baby and think you might fall asleep, move somewhere safer or put your baby down in a cot or Moses basket.

Visit The Lullaby Trust for more information on safe sleep.

Let’s get ready for Primary School with ERIC.

Seven tips to help prepare for primary school The first day at primary school can be exciting but also nerve-wracking, for you and your child. Starting school is a big step for children and while it is normal for all children to have worries and fears, it is important to keep an eye out for any signs they may be struggling. Here are some practi...

Take a look 👀

Check Out If You’re Eligible Apply today

Support Group with the Lullaby Trust.

Little Lullaby supports parents who are under 25 years old. It’s a dedicated social media space where young mums and dads can share their stories and empower one another (as well as a place they can get safer sleep advice).
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There are also workshops, online resources, and a dedicated panel of young parents who make sure this demographic remains at the heart of what we do.
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If you’re a parent who is under 25, give them a follow: Little Lullaby UK

Starting Solid food at 6 months🥣🍽️🥕🍌🥔

Gagging is a normal reflex as your baby learns to chew and swallow solid foods. Gagging is loud, whereas choking is quiet.

If your child has white skin, they may look red when they're gagging and blue (cyanosis) when they're choking. If your child has brown or black skin, redness when gagging may be harder to see, and if they're choking, their gums, inside their lips, or their fingernails may look blue.

For more information on choking and gagging, and what to do in each instance, visit: https://www.nhs.uk/start-for-life/baby/weaning/safe-weaning/choking-and-gagging-on-food/

Some fun and free activities you can do with your children this summer to encourage outdoor play 🌻🐞🐛🍃

We would like to give our thanks to the 3 lovely mums and babies who met IFCs Rosy and Fay and came along to Cynon breastfeeding group in Aberdare Library, hosted by HV Myra Evans. The mothers shared their experiences of how they have or will be soon returning to work and breastfeeding. Support was their key message today. With the support of close family and considerate employers returning to work has helped them to continue to enjoy breastfeeding. 💕💕💕Aberdare library group today 💕💕💕

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Infant feeding coordinators will be at breastfeeding groups and hospital bases throughout the week.
Come and join us 🙂
Tuesday 1st :
Merthyr ICC 9.30-10.30
Aberdare Library 09.30-11.00
Tonypandy Library 13.00-15.00
Friday 4th :
YCC Foyer 09.30-11.30
POW Foyer 13.00-15.00
Monday 7th:
Pontyclun community hub 10.30-12.00

A fun activity to keep your children entertained on a rainy day 🦄❤️

If you know someone who may benefit please share or tag them below 😊

Please note some groups are not running through the summer holidays so please phone before to check 😊