Happy 1st birthday from the Best Beginnings Team!



Thank you to everyone who has been a part of our award-winning Baby Buddy app's journey so far - we couldn't have done it without you!

We launched Baby Buddy on 19th November last year, and to date over 45,000 mums, partners and healthcare professionals have downloaded the app.  Baby Buddy has been created to support the emotional and physical health and wellbeing of expectant and new mums, and to empower and inform parents so they can maximise their children’s social, emotional, physical and language development.

A huge thank you to the Big Lottery Fund for funding Baby Buddy, to the staff from the Department of Health and several Royal Colleges and professional bodies for your input and endorsements, and crucially to all of the parents who helped us shape the look, feel and content of Baby Buddy.

Thanks also to the Galvani Foundation and Burdett Trust for their support in making the new maternal mental health films, which are being added into Baby Buddy in the coming weeks and months as soon as they have been approved by our Editorial Board and Parent Panel.

Baby Buddy covers pregnancy through to the first six months after birth, with huge input from mums and healthcare professionals, and gives 24 hour access to personalised content approved by doctors and midwives.  In addition to the range of interactive features in the app there are over 100 short films that address various aspects of pregnancy and parenthood.  

Your feedback has been overwhelming! 

What mums are saying about Baby Buddy

"Just wanted to say how much I like the baby buddy app. I find the daily information useful and it covers a good range of topics - most other apps I have focus entirely on the baby, and it's nice to have some tips and comments which relate to myself and my relationships. I also like how it's personalised with all our names."

"I love this app, so glad my midwife told me about it. My baby is 11 weeks old now and I've found the daily updates spot on for the hurdles I'm facing and the stages he's reaching."

"Baby Buddy has been a real buddy to me, I have enjoyed great mental companionship from this app.  The daily advice and all the films have been really helpful on caring for my baby, my partner and I. This is simply brilliant and amazing. Thumbs up!"

What healthcare professionals are saying about Baby Buddy

"I am a health visitor and think this app is fantastic. So much useful and reassuring information for expectant mothers. I love the videos too. I am about to start a new job as an FNP nurse and will be promoting Baby Buddy."

The Best Beginnings Team are inviting app users to leave a review on the app store. It will take you a few minutes but would be a wonderful first birthday present to Baby Buddy! With more reviews Baby Buddy will move further up the app store ranking, become a featured app and get more downloads and help more parents – you can help make this happen!

This first birthday is a really significant milestone on the Baby Buddy journey.  We have sent out free leaflets and posters to over 140 locations across the country and are actively embedding the app in a number of these areas.  We are so grateful to all the parents and professionals who have given their input and feedback – together we have created an app that is supporting parents from all backgrounds to help them look after themselves and give their children the best start. 

Mums who have completed the in-app feedback have told us Baby Buddy is helping them to be confident during pregnancy and early parenthood, and is strengthening the relationship between mothers and their babies: 99% say they are learning more about their pregnancy, 89% report feeling closer to their baby, and 87% say that they are getting more out of their appointments. 

We are proud to have won the AXA PPP award this year, and we were a finalist in the EHI Awards.  It is really exciting to be on the journey into Baby Buddy's second year.  We are actively seeking funding to make BB even better, and to create versions for dads, parents of sick and premature babies, and parents from different communities.  Thank you to everyone who has made it possible to get this vital information to mums in an accessible, reliable and friendly way.

The app has over 100 new users every day.  The majority of these are mums, however dads, partners and family members are also downloading the app, and healthcare professionals are registering and using it in their practice.

Baby Buddy is free to download from the Google Play store for Android phones and the Apple store for iPhones.  More information and a web version of the app are available here

Baby Buddy allows users to ask questions at any time, day or night.  The information is easy to understand, and you get daily updates on how your bump and then baby are developing, as well as tips on looking after yourself as a new mum.  You can personalise your avatar, put reminders in the calendar about appointments, watch films, and search for local information. 

Baby Buddy has been endorsed by and created with input from The Royal College of Midwives, The Royal College of Nursing, The Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health, The Royal College of Speech and Language Therapists, The Community Practitioners and Health Visitors Association, the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists, The Institute of Health Visitors, UNICEF BFI, the Society for Reproductive and Infant Psychology and the Royal College of Psychiatrists.

Please donate online or text Best01 £5 to 70070 in celebration of Baby Buddy’s first birthday.   

Baby Buddy is endorsed by the Department of Health and: