Who
are we?
We have the qualification of International Board Certified Lactation Consultant, and are all involved in supporting breastfeeding in some way. (Associate Members do not need to have the IBCLC title.) LCGB is affiliated with the International Lactation Consultant Association, so full members can get reduced ILCA membership fees. Click here for more information on the benefits of joining ILCA.
Many of us are employed in the health care system as midwives, neonatal nurses, or health visitors. Others work as breast feeding counsellors in organisations like the National Childbirth Trust, the La Leche League, the Breastfeeding Network or the Association of Breastfeeding Mothers. Some are in specialist hospital or community posts such as Infant Feeding Advisors or Breastfeeding Co-ordinators.
 What
do we do?
We work with health professionals and lay support groups in providing
formal and informal education in lactation management for parents,
and for the staff who care for them. We give information and practical
help to mothers at any stage in the breastfeeding process, in order
to prevent or solve difficulties and to make the experience as enjoyable
as possible. We may also act as their advocates in liaison with
other health professionals such as GPs, for example in giving advice
about medical treatment.
We also lobby for the creation of a society in which breastfeeding
is accepted as the normal and preferred method of nourishing babies
and young children. We challenge and strive to remove the many obstacles
which stand in the way of this goal.
How did we obtain our qualification?
We undertook various courses of studies covering many aspects of
infant feeding, including anatomy and physiology of lactation, infant
development, child protection, use of medication in nursing mothers,
and counselling skills. There is no set curriculum, but preparatory
courses are available. We sat a rigorous examination lasting 6 hours.
After 5 years we are required to give evidence that we have continued
our studies, and after 10 years we resit the examination.
What is the purpose of our association?
We believe that our professional qualification enables parents and
health professionals to be confident that we have essential knowledge
and skill to share. As a group, we can encourage and educate each
other, and work more effectively to change hospital practices and
update professional knowledge. We do not know everything about breastfeeding
- in fact, the more we study, the more gaps in our knowledge we
encounter - but we do have an expert understanding of human lactation,
and seek to facilitate it in every way possible.
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Photography © Michelle Chalmers.
LCGB would like to thank the following for so generously donating their time in posing for the photographs:
Anna, Alan, Blake, Leah & Nina.
Scarlet & Austin.
Caroline, Sienna & Francesca.
Polly, Matt & Harvey |
How to contact us
You can contact us by emailing info@lcgb.org
with any questions you may have.
For membership enquiries please email the Membership Secretary
Sheila Company.
For Exam enquiries please email the Exam
Co-ordinator.
Or write to:
LCGB,
P.O. Box 56,
Virginia Water,
GU25 4WB.
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LCGB is helping raise funds for Baby Milk Action with this publication by
Alison Blenkinsop IBCLC. Click here for more details. |
Knitted
Breast Pattern:
Click
here to
download the instructions to make a knitted breast (Requires
free Adobe Acrobat Reader):  .
The following article originally appeared in the RCM Midwives Journal:
Specialist Support For Breastfeeding
- Becoming A Lactation Consultant (Rich Text Format)
Article Photos: 1
2 3
RCM
Midwives Journal, Volume 5, Number 5, 1 May 2002 , pp. 183-185(3)
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