The National Childbirth Trust

THE National Childbirth Trust (NCT) is undergoing an image transformation following concerns that it's too middle-class.

The update comes on the back of a two-year review of the charity's work.  Their '20/20 strategy' aims to reach all twenty million parents in the UK regardless of their background.

The NCT which was formed in 1956, has 100,000 members, making it the biggest parenting charity in the UK.

Anne Fox, NCT head of corporate communications, said "We need to get the message out that the NCT is for everyone, not just for 'posh' parents.  We want the person who says 'You should go to NCT' to be a pregnant 15-year-old living in central Manchester".

The NCT which was formed in 1956, has 100,000 members, making it the biggest parenting charity in the UK. It provided antenatal classes for about 90,000 couples last year, 16 per cent of them free through the NHS.

A parent wanting to sign up to the paid-for sessions is charged around £200. Reasearch has shown that of those signed up, 86 per cent  had a degree and 95 per cent were white.

Under its new strategy, the NCT is bidding to run more NHS and children centre classes, which would open up its membership to a more diverse range of parents.

It is also softening its stance on breastfeeding as its past strident campaigning can alienate women who decide to bottle-feed.

Breastfeeding rates among new mothers range from 90 per cent for more affluent women, to just over 70 per cent for those in the poorest social classes and only 63 per cent for teenage mothers.

The Government recommends that babies are breast fed exclusively for six months.

Mrs Fox said, "We're happy to admit that over the years we have perhaps been evangelical about breastfeeding because at that time, it was needed. Now we don't believe that that is the right approach.
Most women want to breastfeed and many stop before they want to because of external pressures such as a lack of support. We want to work with parents and remove any barriers that might be there"

The charity has around 10,000 volunteers and a branch in every postcode.  It currently runs free NHS antenatal classes in Birmingham, Chester, Eastbourne and Salisbury and is bidding for more contracts across the country.

"Our new approach is to move away from the central Government message to a local level.  It is about providing breast feeding support regardless of colour, creed or background."

The NCT's change of approach on infant feeding is likely to prove controversial as it comes at a time when the Government has cut funds to promote breastfeeding.

A councillor with the Association of Breast Feeding Mothers said: "The NCT is right in that the real crisis is the number of women who initially breastfeed but don't go on to meet their own breastfeeding goals.

"But you can't assume everybody has the same access to information about the benefits of breast feeding. I've spoken to lots of women from all backgrounds, who really don't know why exclusive breastfeeding is recommended."

Source: The Telegraph