Julie Crawford Award for Breastfeeding Support
The Julie Crawford award is co-ordinated by the Baby Feeding Law Group, available for practicing health visitors who have made significant contribution to – or has an ongoing impact on breastfeeding support in the UK, at individual or policy level. Award winners need to have demonstrated an awareness and commitment to the protection and defence of breastfeeding, facilitating universal access for support that is independent of commercial influence.
Alison Spiro (below right)a Health Visitor from North West London, being presented with her award by Patti Rundall OBE at the Baby Milk Action AGM - April 2010. Alison fulfilled the criteria by not only making a significant contribution to breastfeeding support in the UK, but also demonstrating outstanding commitment to ensuring that parents are protected from commercial influence.
Background
In November 2001, Julie Crawford died from a rare disease, at the age of 42. Julie was a health visitor and a former Director of Baby Milk Action. She cared passionately about breastfeeding and was never frightened to stand up and fight for the rights of mothers to independent and sensitive care. Julie was especially concerned about the extent of industry funding of education for health professionals and was also keen to push for legal action in defence of mother’s rights to breastfeed. She was one of the first health visitors to participate in the International Breastfeeding Course at the Institute of Child Health (self-funded, since employers could not find the resources).
In 1992, she wrote in the JBI newsletter about the barriers to breastfeeding support from within the health visiting and midwifery professions - where so many had not had adequate training and so many had not had adequate support for their own breastfeeding experiences and the chance to discuss the feelings this left them with: "there is no safe forum in which to reach some understanding". Julie also noted that "many health professionals endorse expectations of infant behaviour which damage breastfeeding" and called for "articulate voices" to promote change for mothers and for health professionals.
Previous winners of the award
- Gill Rapley 2003
- Deanna Vearncombe 2004
- Sharon Breward 2005
- Annette Olilvie-Forbes 2006
- Alison Spiro 2009
Guidelines for nominations in 2010
Please visit the
Baby Feeding Law Group website.
