And to mark World Breastfeeding Week, we're reinforcing our commitment to increasing breastfeeding rates and our pledge to welcoming and supporting breastfeeding.

Lanarkshire currently reports some of the lowest breastfeeding rates in Scotland, with around half (50.3%) of mothers who breastfeed at birth, dropping to less than one in three (30.4%) after 6-8 weeks.

We're leading the way to drive a shift in culture change with plans in place to improve breastfeeding rates by increasing breastfeeding facilities, making these more accessible and normalising breastfeeding.

Breastfeeding rates can be linked to levels of deprivation which is concerning and those from the least deprived areas are much more likely to breastfeed.

And, given the health pandemic and the lockdown experiences of new mums, some may feel more nervous or inhibited to breastfeed outside the home.

Breastfeeding delivers so many benefits to both mum and baby. It protects children from a wide range of illnesses including infection, diabetes, asthma, heart disease and cot death (Sudden Infant Death Syndrome), as well as obesity. It protects mothers from breast and ovarian cancers and heart disease. In addition, it supports the development of a positive mother-baby relationship and the mental wellbeing of both baby and mother.

Depute Leader of North Lanarkshire Council, Councillor Paul Kelly, said: “The impact of Covid-19 on families will widen the health inequality gap even further and, together with our partners, we’re committed to closing this gap.

“We’re taking action and have produced an action plan that will positively impact across all aspects of community life. From taking the breastfeeding message into schools and designing our new community buildings to include breastfeeding facilities; to encouraging more businesses to seek accreditation and carry the Breastfeeding Friendly Scotland sign and supporting new mums who wish to continue to breastfeed on their return from maternity leave, we’re determined to increase breastfeeding rates.

“By working with our partners and our local communities, we aim to make North Lanarkshire a supportive and welcoming place where new mums breastfeeding feel comfortable and where people across the area can look forward to a healthy future.”

New mum, Hannah Gunn is breastfeeding her son Rafael. She said: “Our breastfeeding journey like most started out a little bumpy. We managed to struggle through the first few weeks and one day something just clicked into place. It’s now my favourite part of the day.”

Heather Knox, chief executive for NHS Lanarkshire, said: "However a mother decides to feed her baby, NHS Lanarkshire aim to provide the support that they need. Our  Maternity and Health Visiting /Family Nurse services have Unicef Baby Friendly accreditation, demonstrating our commitment to supporting new parents in their feeding choices.

Supporting parents to make fully informed choices is important. How a baby is fed has life-long implications for both mother and baby. However, research shows that 80 per cent of women stopped breastfeeding before they wanted to.

Our aim is to make Lanarkshire a place where breastfeeding is the norm and to build a supportive community around families to support breastfeeding, to encourage more women to feel comfortable to breastfeed for as long as they want."

People in Lanarkshire looking for breastfeeding support can contact the infant feeding team on 01698 366710 or by visiting NHS Lanarkshire's infant feeding advice page.