Centre for Breastfeeding Education and   Research

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The Centre for Breastfeeding Education and Research’s mission is to improve breastfeeding and human lactation education, promote the formation of an IBCLC professional identity, enhance innovative research and foster communities of practice in the field.

The Centre for Breastfeeding Education and Research hosts the international Breastfeeding London Course, as well as tailored breastfeeding education/training for Health Care Providers (HCP).

The Breastfeeding London Course is a set of 13 monthly/bi-monthly Study days at a postgraduate level of education. It prepares candidates to sit the International Board Lactation Consultant Examiners exam and offers in total 111 hours (which exceeds the 95 hours Lactation Specific Education requirements) and includes:

  • 91 hours of contact lactation specific education, including 12 hours of education focused on communication/counselling skills
  • 20 hours of an independent study module (an academic presentation or poster)
  • OPTIONAL: 40 hours of independent study module (an academic essay)

Join our international community of over 600 alumnae passionate about providing culturally effective evidence-based breastfeeding support!

Our Course is the only one in the UK that is taught by a multidisciplinary faculty and we have an outstanding IBLCE exam passing rate from students that have taken the full Course. We have become an approved Open College Network London centre and the course has held in the past the former professional accreditation by the Royal College of Midwives.

We have been teaching the Course for the past 13 consecutive years.

The content applies to best practice issues in the clinical setting; it includes didactic, practical clinical and counselling skills, as well as independent study modules (including a presentation or a poster and an optional essay). We use real clinical cases to help students develop clinical thinking and problem-solving skills. The Study Days are interactive, they enhance multiple kinaesthetic learning styles and they include:

  • Lectures using principles of transformative learning
  • Small group sessions that enhance active learning
  • Practical activities
  • Clinical skills
  • Clinical cases to enhance critical thinking
  • Games
  • Roleplays to develop empathetic counselling
  • Quizzes
  • Arts-based learning
  • Mindfulness based practices

We offer a NEW monthly IBCLC exam prep session (online and free) for all our students, alumane from the full course who want to get ready for sitting the exam.

A material pack, as well as a Course Certificate, will be issued upon completion; this includes the topics covered from the IBCLE Exam Blueprint.

We offer a blended learning approach, supported by a learning management platform with 2 modalities of Course delivery which include synchronous and asynchronous learning:

1) fully online option where all study days are live and each study day includes a 1 hour pre-recorded webinar

2) hybrid option which includes in-person live study days (half) in a venue in London and live online study days (the other half) where each study day includes a 1 hour pre-recorded webinar.

For those wanting to sit the IBLCE exam, our Course meets the 95 hours lactation specific education criteria from Pathway 1.  If you are not a HCP our Course does not cover the 14 subjects set forth as part of the Health Science requirements. It is your responsibility to check directly with IBLCE all pathways and requirements, prior to applying to our course. It exceeds the 5 hours of education in Communication and Counselling skills requirement, with a specific focus on lactation and breastfeeding care.

This is a popular Course with more applicants than available places. We are proud to say that our international students numbers are growing in our fully Online live Course; with people joining us from Jordan, France, Sweeden, Iceland, Spain, Denmark, Ireland, Austria, Bermuda, Australia, Hong Kong and Belgium to name some. This course will soon also be offered in French and Spanish, if you are interested get in touch.

 

The Staffordshire and Stoke on Trent Partnership NHS Trust group after finishing their full 12 days Course in March 2017! 

Our Breastfeeding Course is intended for:

  • All health professionals with an interest in supporting breastfeeding dyads that want to update their knowledge
  • Midwives and student midwives
  • Infant Feeding Coordinators/Lead
  • Health Visitors
  • Doctors, Paediatricians or GPs
  • Dieticians and Nutritionists
  • Nurses (including NICU)
  • Breastfeeding counsellors or breastfeeding support workers
  • Osteopaths/chiropractors
  • Complementary Alternative Medicine Practitioners supporting breastfeeding dyads
  • Community and children centre's staff
  • Birth and postnatal doulas
  • NCT/Birth preparation educators
  • Maternity nurses
  • Passionate breastfeeding mothers

Course content

 

Study day 1: Anatomy and physiology

  • Breast and nipple structure and development
  • Breast and nipple anatomical variations (including inverted nipples)
  • Maternal physiology and endocrinology (hormones, lactogenesis, endocrine/autocrine control of milk supply)
  • Breastfeeding cultural beliefs and practices around the world, including the WHO Code and the UNICEF Baby friendly hospital initiative

Study day 2: Position and attachment

  • Physiology of the suck/swallow/breathe triad
  • Getting breastfeeding started with evidence-based care
  • The diversity of position and attachment (mother and baby-led  approaches)
  • Latch problems and how to improve
  • Strategies for non-latching babies

Study day 3: Breast milk composition

  • Maternal and infant health risks of formula feeding
  • Biochemistry of human milk: nutritional and immunological properties
  • Impact of birth practices on breastfeeding
  • Antenatal breastfeeding preparation for couples/mothers

Study day 4: Breast and nipple pain + related pathologies

  • Understanding breast and nipple pain/trauma
  • Engorgement, Plugged ducts, Mastitis, Abscess, Bacterial + Fungal Infections and Raynaud's syndrome (indluding non white skin tones)
  • Other breast pathologies
  • Available treatments based on NICE guidelines and Complementary Alternative Medicine evidence-based treatments

Study day 5: Breast surgeries and management of undersupply

  • Breastfeeding after augmentation surgery
  • Breastfeeding after reduction surgery
  • Insufficient milk supply/insufficient milk transfer and their management
  • Social/family context of breastfeeding and post natal adaption

Study day 6: Research and ethics

  • Research, theory and lactation
  • How to appraise research
  • Ethics: standards/scope of practice
  • Real ethical case scenarios: how to respond from our moral compass as IBCLCs
  • The anatomy of a consultation: theory and practice role play examples

Study day 7: Ankyloglossia/Tongue ties

  • Anatomy of the infant oral cavity
  • Classification and assessment tools of the lingual frenulum
  • Intraoral examinations
  • Impact of restricted frenulums on the feeding dyad
  • Supporting the dyad through the journey: pre and post division

Study day 8: Breastfeeding devices

  • Expressing protocols (including hand expression and colostrum harvesting)
  • Alternative methods of supplementation and other breastfeeding devices
  • Donor milk banking
  • Re-lactation and Breastfeeding without birthing

Course content might vary slightly according to the needs of the study day.

Study day 9

  • Weaning: mother led and biological
  • Abrupt weaning after still birth
  • Working while breastfeeding
  • Some stages within breastfeeding (by invited author Emma Pickett, IBCLC)

Study day 10

  • Premies and late preterm babies
  • Infants/mothers with other feeding challenges including:
    • Downs syndrome
    • Infants with clefts
    • Inverted nipples
  • Oversupply and its management
  • Colic, reflux, GERD, allergies, food intolerances and lactose intolerance in the breastfed baby

Study day 11: Newborn assessment + Paediatric conditions

  • Newborn assessment: physical and behavioural including neonatal reflexes
  • Hypoglycemia
  • Hyperbilirubinemia
  • Maternal medication and breastfeeding

Study day 12: Counselling/communication skills and connection (with invited teacher Benaifer Bhandari)

  • Right and left brain approaches for effective communication/counselling
  • The alchemy of connection
  • Mindfulness approaches for better communication
  • Chestfeeding, supporting LCBTQAI+ families and the use of inclusive language (by invited researcher Kate Luxion, MFA, MPH, LCCE, FHEA)

Study day 13

  • Breastsleep, bed-sharing and SIDS
  • Preparing for the IBCLC examination (overview and strategies)
  • How much have you learnt: Role play of real clinical cases
  • Mock exam!

 

Feedback

I really appreciated the TT study day. As an IBCLC there are two important things you should always have: a current and evidence-based knowledge and good communication skills; Indira gave us both. Her teaching was understandable and in-depth. She gave us all the information about anatomy and physiology, differences and classification of TT, and the effects on breastfeeding. We worked on different clinical cases, and throughout play-role games we strengthened our communication skills. Her commitment to respect women' wishes was palpable, and I share her feeling too; during our consultations with mums we always have to give correct information, but never imposing our decision: breastfeeding is a mum's choice. I hope to meet the teaching team again to learn more things from her and about her experiences.  Margaret RM and IBCLC

Thank you, Indira!

I have found your passion and knowledge inspirational.  I have found the Course invigorating and for the past 12 months, I have gone away from the study days with my batteries recharged to carry on with my role of Infant Feeding Coordinator.  The Course has enabled me to deliver the Baby-Friendly Initiative with much more confidence and knowledge.  You have provided us with a wonderful learning experience with a warm, welcoming and friendly environment.  Once again thank you!  Diane Clark, Health Visitor and IFC

 
"Thank you for such an informative and enjoyable day on Position and Attachment.  I learnt a lot and thoroughly enjoyed meeting yourself and the other students.  I really enjoyed your teaching style and your teaching studio.  It is so welcoming and you create a very safe, relaxed and nurturing environment ideal and essential for learning. I felt it encouraged a very fruitful and interesting discussion." 
Carmen Pagor IBCLC, Bsc(Hons), DipHE, RN Child, HV

"Thank you for all your time and support throughout the whole Course, I have learnt so much.  Despite completing my midwifery and health visitor training, I never felt confident in dealing with more complex feeding issues other than attachment and positioning.  I honestly was skeptical about attending a Course created by someone who is not a HCP as I was very used to midwife/doctor education.  To say I was pleasantly surprised is an understatement.  I have found this Course the most interesting, interactive and informative Course that I have ever attended in my professional career!  I know colleagues who completed online learning and felt that they didn't learn anything, I can only rave about how much I learnt from you and the others in the group!" Angela Chalkley RM, HV + IBCLC

“Thank you BFL team very much for a lovely set of Study Days.  Your knowledge of lactation is immense and I have learnt so much.  What was also great was meeting and interacting with so many people that have a genuine love for breastfeeding dyads and that come from so many different backgrounds.  Thank you.” Jeanette Larkins, Infant Feeding Coordinator, RM and IBCLC

“I just wanted to let you know that your grace, humility and passion about what you taught us on the Course really resonated with me...  As a student midwife we have had little breastfeeding training so far.  But I am already working at the post ward supporting breastfeeding mothers.  I have found the study days fabulous.  The use of clinical cases and life models for anatomy and physiology makes it so captivating.  Any midwife that has a chance should attend this Course, I highly recommend it.  People come up to me and ask as they say I am very good at helping and supporting breastfeeding women for a first-year midwifery student. I am forever thankful for these lifelong skills you have equipped me with!”   Charlotte

Firstly, I cannot thank you enough for what you are doing in the lactation field and wider audience. Having completed this training I believe this information needs to reach every professional, and layperson in contact with a new mother for education and support.

Having spent many hours prepping and reading around lactation and linking it with my specialism for my essay and presentation, I can see the amount of work you have put into the course which was beautifully presented by Claudia and Constanza.

Claudia is exceptional in her teaching great energy, warmth and patience. I always ask questions, and this was a completely new subject for me, so I feel I challenged the latter quality in the fullest sense. Questions were explained in full in the most professional warm manner throughout the course. Constanza is also a  lovely energetic teacher. Yesterday, a very difficult subject, research, was beautifully presented to the point I actually understood it and was very interested in it, albeit I am not academic.

I will highly recommend your course, and indeed if you wish any musculoskeletal specialist interested in this area to contact me to answer any questions via email, I will be more than happy to have a chat with them. Tracy Elroy

A very enjoyable and informative 12 months Course.  They use different learning styles, so it is very interactive and the trainers create a relaxed learning environment which makes it very easy to follow and learn an incredible amount of information.  Even though I had previously done the basic 2 days UNICEF training Course including the Train the Trainer one, this Course is of another calibre!   I have really enjoyed the Course and learned much more than I could have ever imagined.  Thank you, Indira, Anna, Claudia and Costanza, so much!  

South Staffordshire and Stoke on Trent NHS Partnership Trust 

“Indira, Claudia, Anna and Costanza; Thank you for such an inspirational and motivating year.  My practice supporting breastfeeding dyads has already improved so dramatically and my knowledge base has grown exponentially.  Even better my appetite for breastfeeding information is now insatiable!   You have facilitated the most wonderful group of women, which has personally supported my journey in early motherhood.  Thank you, thank you! Jen (Midwife)”

Excellent Course!  Good mix of theory and practical application and group work.  

Pauline Evans, UNICEF IMPLEMENTATION LEAD, Staffordshire & Stoke-on-Trent Partnership NHS Trust 

You can submit feedback about your experience on one of our study days here

 

NEW! ONLINE COURSE to start in October 2024: 

  • Study Day 1: Friday 18th October 2024
  • Study Day 2: Friday 8th November
  • Study Day 3: Friday 6th December
  • Study Day 4: Friday 10th January 2025
  • Study Day 5: Friday 14th of February 25
  • Study Day 6: Friday 7th of March 25
  • Study Day 7: Friday 11th of April 25
  • Study Day 8: Friday 9th of May 25
  • Study Day 9: Friday 13th of June 25
  • Study Day 10: Friday 11th of July 25
  • Study Day 11: Friday 12th of September 25
  • Study Day 12: Friday 26th of September 25
  • Study Day 13: Friday 10th of October 25

Applications will soon open, if you are interested please email us: [email protected]

Helpers discount 

We offer TWO x 20% discount for our ONLINE course and TWO x 30% discount for our HYBRID course.

Bursary

We offer one bursary per year for the Breastfeeding London Course. This bursary provides a 50% discount to an active and accredited volunteer Breastfeeding Counsellor from any national breastfeeding support organisation. To be eligible, you must not be receiving any income. Email us for more information.

Please email us if you are interested!

Clinical instruction/mentoring programme

Would you like to shaddow an IBCLC and learn more about how we work? This opportunity is available only to those that enroll in the full Course. The primary purpose is to prepare individuals for this profession and help them grow into competent and compassionate IBCLCs. A variety of settings and modalities are available (private consultations, remote/online consultations and clinic setting) and you would be able to shaddow any of our IBCLCs in the London area. Once you have attended Study Days 1 and 2 you are elligible to apply to this programme. You would be able to observe a minimum of 3 sessions but are welcome to top up as needed. Details and costs of this programme will be explained to all students during their course.

Pathway 3 is an option we are happy to explore with you if you have been accepted on our Course.

Cost for the Hybrid Course:

  • Full 13 days Course: £1500 (one payment only, bank transfer or credit card)
  • Full 13 days Course: £1650 (£390 non-refundable deposit + 3 X £420 by monthly standing order only)
  • Full 13 days Course Course for unwaged voluntary Breastfeeding Counsellors (from an accredited Breastfeeding Organisation) or Student Midwives: £1250 which includes a £200 deposit (non-refundable) + 3X  £320 monthly payments (by standing order only)
  • Full 13 days Course when an invoice to an NHS Trust, grant funding or any third party is needed: £1800
  • Credit card payment option for one payments only with a 3% surcharge

Cost for the Online Course

  • Full 13 days Course: £1300 (one payment only, bank transfer or credit card)
  • Full 13 days Course: £1455 (£300 non-refundable deposit + 3 X £385 by monthly standing order only)
  • Full 13 days Course Course for unwaged voluntary Breastfeeding Counsellors (from an accredited Breastfeeding Organisation) or Student Midwives: £1050 which includes a £210 deposit (non-refundable) + 3X  £280 monthly payments (by standing order only)
  • Full 13 days Course when an invoice to an NHS Trust, grant funding or any third party is needed: £1600
  • Credit card payment option for one payments only with a 3% surcharge

Full payment is needed PRIOR to the start of each Course.

People that book the whole Course are eligible to do the Clinical instruction programme during their Course duration, please enquire about the application process.

 

Terms and conditions

Terms of Service and Refund Policy

  1. Payment in full should be made within 10 days of receipt of the offer of place.
  2. If payment is made by instalments, the deposit must be paid within 10 days of receipt of the offer of place. Each instalment thereafter must be paid by the end of each month following the receipt of the offer of place. For example, where an offer is received on the 14th March, the deposit must be paid by 24th March, and each instalment thereafter must be paid by 30th April, 31st May etc.
  3. If you have paid your course and are unable to commence study, you may request a refund of the course fee. We will refund your fee on the following basis:
    • If you cancel your place at least 28 days before your course starts, all tuition fees paid are refundable less an administrative fee of 10% of the full course fee.
    • If you cancel your place less than 28 days before your course starts or withdraw before start date, 50% of the full course fee is refundable.
    • If you withdraw after commencement date norefund is payable.
  4. Any refund will be paid within 4 weeks after receipt of your completed request for refund.
  5. If any or all of the course runs online for any reason, our terms and conditions remain the same.

Payments from NHS Trusts or other institutions or third parties

When an invoice to an NHS Trust or other institution or third party is required, you MUST have obtained approval for funding from the NHS Trust or other institution or third party PRIOR to submitting your application. It is your responsibility to ensure payment of the invoice is made and received by Breastfeeding London 14 days prior to the start of the course. Your place is only secured once full payment has been received by Breastfeeding London. If payment is not received in accordance with this paragraph 5, your place will be deferred to the next available course.

You can miss a maximum of 1 Study Day during the full Course and make these up in the following calendar year (same venue) at no extra cost.  More than 1 missed study day, you will have to pay each to make up the missed study

General Data Protection Regulation

Please tick here to read our Privacy Policy for this course.

Babies welcome

We endorse the Innocenti Declaration and believe that observing real breastfeeding dyads is a central part of breastfeeding education. Therefore, babies in arms (up to 6 months old) are welcome.  As a matter of courtesy, if your baby becomes too loud or disrupts the session, it might be better to step outside.

NEW! Ankyloglossia/Tongue-tie training for NHS staff

The Centre for Breastfeeding Education and Research (CBER) offers a comprehensive 3.5-hour training course on Ankyloglossia (restricted frenulum) for Health Care Providers, lay professionals or peer supporters working with breastfeeding dyads. This training can be customised to fit the needs of your NHS trust or group and is available in various formats: online, hybrid, or fully in-person, depending on your preference and location. Groups must self-organise as CBER does not handle group coordination or related administration.

Topics covered:

  • Anatomy of the infant oral cavity
  • Classification and assessment tools of the lingual frenulum
  • The theory of intraoral examinations (if you are able to recruit some dyads intra oral exams can be taught live)
  • Impact of a restricted frenulum on the feeding dyad
  • Supporting the dyad through the journey: pre and post division

Email us if you are interested: [email protected]

Professional training for hospitals/HCP (in-house)

Would you like our training to come to you?  Do you have a group of colleagues (HCP, midwives, nurses, health visitors, GPs, lay professionals) that might be interested and have some teaching space? We have delivered training over a one 1 year period (1 Study Day per month) or a condensed version (2 Study Days per month over 6 months).

Our training can be delivered according to your needs and requirements anywhere in the UK or abroad (in English, French or Spanish) and can include:

  • breastfeeding peer supporters training
  • specialist conferences,
  • practical seminars,
  • one-day training courses,
  • basic seminar,
  • team training on individual topics.

The Septemeber 2016-Septemeber 2017 London group

 

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