Breast Buddies – who are we and how did we get here?
The idea for Breast Buddies, a mum to mum peer support service for breastfeeding mothers, was conceived and developed by a group of NHS breastfeeding support volunteers who are also local mums. The idea was to develop peer support for breastfeeding (a concept that we know works to help mums feel better about breastfeeding and breastfeed for longer) in Perth and Kinross, providing more appropriate training and ongoing support and supervision for volunteers. There was also the desire to develop the service to include an SMS support service for new mums in order to increase the reach and inclusivity. Home-Start Perth and Kinross offered to manage the project due to their expertise in working with volunteers and young families.
What do we do?
Breast Buddies now has almost 50 volunteers to date. Training has been developed and carried out by our Breast Buddies Co-ordinators. Ongoing training and workshops are offered regularly for volunteers as well as opportunities to get together and learn from each other’s experiences.
Throughout Perth and Kinross there are now 9 weekly face to face support groups run by trained Breast Buddies volunteers. There is a busy Facebook group which engages to date over 1600 local mums, providing a place to discuss experiences, ask for tips, share information etc. The SMS support service started in February 2018 and involves close working with NHS Tayside. All mums in P&K who go home breastfeeding should be offered the chance to be put in touch with a peer supporter who will text them. The mum can ask questions, share concerns and seek out support from the volunteer at any time. 266 new mums received a text in the first year (2018-2019). The text service has been very popular with referrers, mums and peer supporters already with some very positive feedback;
“Just knowing someone is there makes it easier to carry on when things are really tough” (Mum)
“So helpful to have someone (a peer supporter) who you can pass a mum on to, so good to know you are not leaving her alone” (Midwife)
“I love being able to reach out to mothers in the early days, at the support groups you just have to sit and wait for mums to come but this way (the text service) we are reaching out to them!” (Peer Supporter)
In April 2025, Home-Start Perth & Kinross adopted Breast Buddies Dundee ensuring Dundee families received continued breastfeeding support. We currently have 2 local groups running with plans to open more soon. Like Breast Buddies Perth & Kinross, Breast Buddies Dundee run weekly face-to-face groups, a busy Facebook group, WhatsApp groups and 1-2-1 text support by volunteer Breastfeeding Peer Supporters.
Breast Buddies – How do I register?
To join breast Buddies Perth & Kinross, please complete our Welcome Registration form here:
https://forms.cloud.microsoft/e/GF4ezqM4RU
To join breast Buddies Dundee, please complete our Welcome Registration form here:
