Learning outcomes

Welcome to the UNICEF UK Baby Friendly Initiative’s suite of learning outcomes to support new healthcare practitioners involved in the care for new babies, their mothers and families in UK public services.

These learning outcomes were developed by relevant clinical and academic experts to articulate the minimum knowledge and understanding of infant feeding that it would be reasonable to expect from a health practitioner at the point of qualification. The aim is to give an understanding of infant feeding, how to support it in practice, and how to access further learning.

While there are no plans to provide full assessment and accreditation for these courses at this time, it is hoped that the learning outcomes will provide a stimulus to universities and others to start to consider what should be covered in relevant curricula and training, and then to take action to make that a reality.

The learning outcomes are an expansion of our university programme, building on our success of developing an accreditation programme for pre-registration midwifery and health visiting programmes. Find out more about our university accreditation programme.

We still have a long way to go before the health service as a whole – from doctors to dietitians to pharmacists – is enabled to support families effectively. However, with these new learning outcomes we hope to move in the right direction; towards an environment in which all families receive consistent infant feeding support and guidance throughout their whole journey in the health service.

Use the links below to view the learning outcomes for each practitioner.