Get Baby Buddy app in your local area!

Baby Buddy Local is a new initiative designed to embed the award-winning, clinically-assured Baby Buddy app into local areas across the UK. Baby Buddy Local is a 12-month implementation programme. It is specially designed to reach families at risk of poor health outcomes by integrating the Baby Buddy app across local health & social support services and community organisations.

About Baby Buddy Local

Best Beginnings charity has been 'embedding' Baby Buddy into local maternity and early years pathways since the first version of the app was launched in 2014. With the new Baby Buddy Local programme, our intention is to formalise this process and to boost app uptake in specific localities. We aim to reach more families by empowering healthcare professionals to promote Baby Buddy messages.

Since launching Baby Buddy 2.0 in November 2021, we have commissioned 4 new Baby Buddy Local regions: Surrey Heartlands; Northeast London LMNS; Southwest London LMNS; and Leeds City Council. As of 2023 we are now also working with Walsall Family Hubs Programme and Southwark City Council.

Baby Buddy Local aims to support healthcare professionals and families to work together to improve health outcomes across the UK. Each programme of implementation is bespoke to the specific needs of the local area and is designed to strengthen the virtual support that is available for parents and families.

Baby Buddy Local has been designed to implement Baby Buddy app in a consistent and sustainable way, to strengthen existing signposting and to increase the knowledge and confidence of parents and expectant families.

Baby Buddy Local is rooted in implementation science and collaboration. Typical rollout includes the following phases:

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Key outputs

A typical 12-month Baby Buddy Local implementation programme will include:

An evidence review and assessment of priority health needs and groups
A localised feature in the Baby Buddy app for all local services, available for every user signing up
A series of online trainings and bespoke e-learning for healthcare professionals and community organisations
A Baby Buddy launch event

A media campaign – collaborating with local media channels and social media opportunities
Bespoke Baby Buddy promotion materials – including leaflets, posters, stickers, badges and pens
Access to a live data dashboard with optional quarterly data reports to support local public health intelligence

Key highlights

Highlights from Baby Buddy Local so far:

In NorthEast London there is a 43% increase in usage of the app in 2023. Almost 80% of the users are from minority ethnic groups
On average, Baby Buddy app reaches over 43% of the birth cohort in embedded areas
Baby Buddy is reaching areas with highest deprivation in our trailblazer sites including Leeds and Surrey Heartlands
Around 30% of Baby Buddy app users have an annual household income of less than £25k

11% of Baby Buddy users reported that English is not their first language. This is higher than the national average of 7.7% in the UK

Get involved

Interested to learn more? To chat about embedding Baby Buddy Local in your local area please reach out to the Best Beginnings Impact Team on [email protected].

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