New support to improve safety of newborn babies in Sheffield
Four in every thousand babies born in the city won't make their first birthday
A young Sheffield mum wants to show new parents like her there ARE people to turn to if they're struggling to cope.
21 year old Henrietta Mlalazi's one of twelve new 'Baby safe' champions across the city - signposting support to improve the safety of newborns.
It's as stats show four in every thousand babies born in Sheffield each year won't make it to their first birthday.
Henrietta says it's really important to her to help out others who've been in her position:
"Having a friend that lost her baby, it's created a fire in my belly to help people know what to do, how to prevent certain situations because sometimes it's just having somebody there to teach you the best and safest way to do things. That can make a massive difference - potentially life or death.
"It's really important to have somebody who's not family or direct friends who can help the mums by answering questions that maybe sometimes family member can't answer so they know that there is someone else they can go to for help."
The new 'champions' will help mums and dads access support on breast feeding, safer sleeping, stopping smoking, how to maintain a healthy weight as well as ensuring early access to maternity care.
Henrietta had her baby at 19 years old and says it's particularly important the right information is given to young parents like her:
"You're given a lot of information in such a short period during your pregnancy. It can get overwhelming and you don't fully digest it. Sometimes we can feel a bit patronised because we're young parents so we just switch off and we don't know what to do when a situation arises."