As babies don’t come with instruction manuals, help is at hand, click on the images below for information and videos on looking after your baby.

If you have any questions feel free to contact our health visiting teams:

• Rossmere children’s centre, Rossmere Way, Hartlepool, TS25 5EB – 01429 292444
• Hindpool children’s centre, Hindpool Close, Hartlepool, TS24 0TB  – 01429 292444

Building a strong relationship between you and your baby will give them the best possible start in life and help your child grow up confident and happy.   Building a strong relationship with your baby starts in pregnancy and continues throughout your baby’s life, have a look at the excellent resources from Unicef for more information.

Other helpful links:

https://www.nhs.uk/pregnancy/labour-and-birth/after-the-birth/getting-to-know-your-newborn/

https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/baby/

https://www.nct.org.uk/baby-toddler/everyday-care/10-ways-care-for-your-newborn-baby

 Bath and bedtime can be a real bonding exercise for you and your new baby, below are some hints and tips to help make bathing and putting your baby to bed relaxing and enjoyable for both baby and you.

Washing and bathing your baby

If you've never bathed a baby before it can seem really scary!  This guide produced by the NHS provides guidance for parents on bathing their newborn, also make sure you watch this video below for some useful tips on how to make it easier.

Safe sleep for babies

Your baby will need somewhere safe to sleep at night as during the day. This guide gives advice on how to get your baby to sleep.

Although it is scary to think about, it's important to be aware of sudden infant death syndrome or cot death to prevent it from happening.  Although it's not known why some babies die in this way, this guide provides tips for reducing the risk of cot death and Lullaby Trust have created a advice guide for safe sleeping.

Soothing a crying baby

A crying baby can make any parent feel stressed and worry what to do.  There is lots of advice out there to help to sooth your crying baby, also make sure you check out Cry-Sis for experienced advice for crying and sleepless babies.

Also, here are some posters from ICON explaining why it is normal for infants to cry: I is for Infant Crying is Normal | Babies Cry, You Can Cope!

How can you cope with the lack of sleep?

Of course, sleep is really important for your baby in order for them to develop and grow, it's equally important for you to can good quality sleep.  Many new parents find it hard to manage of less sleep than they are normally used to having, the below video gives you tips from parents on how to cope with lack of sleep.

Nappy Time

The least glamourous part of parenthood - Nappy changing!  If you've never changed a nappy before the thought of it can be really scary, This guidance from the NHS provides a good startpoint for nappy changing and make sure you check out the below video for hints and tips on how to change a dirty nappy!   It's also important to be aware of Nappy Rash, it doesn't have to be something to worry about, this guide will help you out!

Getting To Know Your Baby

Getting to know Your Baby and What You'll Need

Every one of us are different and babies are too!  It's important that you get to know your new little person so that you can spot any changes in their behaviour and/or appearance that might mean they're not feeling well.  This can seem really duanting but try not to worry!

There are loads of resources out there that breakdown what to look out for.  The NHS has a whole section on 'Getting to know Your Newborn' and will explain what will happy in the first few days of your baby being born as well as what you should look out for.  Public Health has created a easy to read guide to support you in the early stages of parenthood.  This guide gives advice of feeding your baby, how to sooth them and how to interact with your new born.

 It's common knowledge that babies come with a lot of stuff and it can become overwhelming but we hope that this guide will breakdown what are necessities for you and your baby.