Breastfeeding and infant feeding: strategic framework 2025-2030

5. Scotland’s Road Map and Delivery Plan

The roadmap for change set out in the Becoming Breastfeeding Friendly Report identified core themes and recommendations which remain relevant and central to how we will deliver. These have been brought into the six strategic goals, as part of the vision for Scotland.

For example, although the rate of exclusive breastfeeding has remained fairly static over the past few years, overall breastfeeding rates are rising. To achieve the full benefits of breastfeeding for health and wellbeing, exclusive breastfeeding is recommended. We will continue to take a whole-system approach to improving mother’s feeding experiences and to support them to achieve their breastfeeding goals.

This road map will need to adapt as new evidence and priorities emerge in Scotland. It will also need to be responsive to wider emerging opportunities and risks in the UK and Internationally.

In addition, the recently published World Breastfeeding Trends Initiative (WBTi) recommendations will need to be considered. These report cards are based on assessments against global key indicators to protect, promote and support breastfeeding, breastfeeding experiences and infant health.

By March 2026, we will refresh the national stretch aim to take us to 2030. This will align with the timing for delivery of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDG’s). It will also be aligned to our ongoing commitment to the World Health Organisation’s global ambitions for breastfeeding, for exclusive breastfeeding up to 6 months and beyond. Progress towards this will be measured in Scotland through a national measurement framework that is in development.

We will monitor progress of the delivery plan and revise it each year to continue to align it with our vision.

5.1. National Delivery Plan 2025/26

Learning and Sharing

• Coordinate a series data workshops to continue to improve knowledge and utility of existing and emerging data sources on infant feeding. May 2025
• Using a partnership approach, set out our common understanding of peer support and first tier support models in Scotland, including core components effective in supporting equity of provision for new parents. July 2025
• Continue to learn from national and international innovations e.g. Cue-based Feeding and apply methodology to spreading improvements to increase impact. May 2025
• Host a celebration event to continue to build on current successes and key learning. February 2026
• Coordinate learning and sharing exchange events to support scaling up of interventions integrated within the national spread plan. Ongoing across 2025/26

Continuous Improvement, Monitoring and Governance

• Explore opportunities to collect survey level data on breastfeeding such as through the maternity experience survey. June 2025
• Establish working group to develop the scope of a follow-up Infant Feeding Survey to the 2017 MIN Survey. January 2026
• Focus on continuing to monitor impacts of this investment through regular engagement with delivery partners. April 2025 and ongoing
• Refresh the national stretch aim to align with a vision for 2030, through stakeholder engagement and consultation. March 2026

Workforce and Environments

• Continue to develop Local Authority Scheme – Implementation Framework and guidance – co-ordinate implementation support plan. June 2025
• Continue to support and track progress of roll out of the Early Learning Scheme across Local Authorities. Ongoing 2025
• Review and refresh the breastfeeding TURAS modules to support health practitioners knowledge and skills. March 2026
• Continue to develop School Scheme scope and priorities for elearning modules December 2025
• NHS Boards and HEI’s will be supported to use the clinical/ practical skills workbook to support breastfeeding and infant feeding skills within practice. Ensuring all staff working with families have the confidence and competence to provide evidence based person centred care. Ongoing 2025/26

Reports and Recommendations

• Initial consideration of recommendations in the study by the Competition and Markets Authority into infant formula. Summer 2025
• Review recommendations from the 2024 World Breastfeeding Trends Initiative (WBTi) Reports and scope actionable responses. September 2025

Review of the evidence base

• Lancet Breastfeeding Series (2023)
• Becoming Breastfeeding Friendly (2019)
• SACN Feeding in the first 12 months of life (2019)
• SACN Feeding young children (1-5 years) (2023)

Ongoing 2025/26

5.2. Road map to 2030

∙ Further embed women’s rights, maternal rights and child rights in line with the evidence on what works to support breastfeeding and infant health.

Strategic Goal 1: Sustaining and Improving

Objective/activity

• National commitment to Unicef UK BFI Achieving Sustainability
• Senior Executive to increase the visibility of Breastfeeding and its key role in primary prevention and contribution to optimising health and wellbeing outcomes integrated into wider planning structures
• Consistent use of relevant and meaningful measures at all system levels
• Use of QI approaches to drive improvement, innovation and collective learning
• Ensure mechanisms to share good practice and innovation nationally
• Provide opportunities for learning and sharing

Outcome

• Continued evidence of progression and aspiration for Unicef UK BFI Achieving Sustainability across sectors (maternity, neonatal, community and HEI’s)
• National and local tracking tools in place to consistently measure impact
• Clear evidence of QI methods being used locally to drive change to meet stretch aim
• Engagement with national and regional learning
• Revised stretch aim in line with 2030 vision

Measures

• Board level engagement and commitment (e.g. through ADPs)
• Ongoing reduction in Breastfeeding inequalities
• Stretch aim on track

Strategic Goal 2: Strengthening Governance and Accountability

Objective/activity

• Leadership, planning and co-ordination is enabled and empowered at all system levels
• Developing tools to support monitoring and feedback
• Work with partners to deliver accessible, timely and effective care approaches supporting babies and new mother at the centre
• Accessibility of relevant data across all system levels, to track delivery and promote accountability

Outcome

• Continued evidence of progression and aspiration for Unicef UK BFI Achieving Sustainability across sectors (maternity, neonatal, community and HEI’s)
• Evidence of partnership working within localities
• Commitment to improve data quality and recording to enable more robust monitoring and assurance demonstrated through national statistics and management information

Measures

• Increased use of available data to inform local action
• Progress through Unicef UK Baby Friendly Accreditation framework

Strategic Goal 3: Improving Skills and Quality of Care

Objective/activity

• NHS Boards to implement training, coaching and mentoring of clinical skills support
• Infant feeding Education and Development framework in place
• Quality standards in place including Breastfeeding Peer Support Core Principles embedded
• Service users and care providers have the ability to share experiences and influence decisions
• Best practice is recognised and scaledup where appropriate

Outcome

• Clinical Skills Workbook is supported nationally and locally embedded
• Learning needs routinely assessed and addressed through national and local education offers
• Stocktake of Breastfeeding Peer Support Core Principles undertaken
• Workforce feel confident and well supported
• Pregnant women and new mother’s experiences are improved

Measures

• Further embedding of the Clinical Skills workbook
• Local learning needs analysis regularly undertaken
• Systematic engagement in education and learning offers in line with workforce need.

Strategic Goal 4: Equity of Access and Outcome

Objective/activity

• Review breastfeeding peer support delivered through NHS and/or 3rd sector partners
• Optimise collective awareness of breastfeeding support delivered through 3rd sector and NHS partners including where, when and how taking account of models of accessibility
• Develop and implement ‘Once for Scotland’ approaches including for clinical care
• Holistic workforce and community embedded approaches which ensure breastfeeding is supported and promoted in public spaces and across community including early learning, schools, higher education and work places

Outcome

• Mapping of breastfeeding support and peer support models across Scotland to identify common core principles
• Improve efficiency and effectiveness of developing ‘Once for Scotland’ approaches through ongoing gap analysis
• Increase uptake of National Breastfeeding Friendly Scotland Scheme, and implementation of Early Learning Scheme
• Develop Schools and Local Authority implementation and support packs
• Promote positive work place activity to support ‘return to work’ and continuation of breastfeeding

Measures

• Integration of Once for Scotland approaches into local delivery, across services
• Evidence of local planning to engage with the National Breastfeeding Friendly Scotland Scheme

Strategic Goal 5: Empowering and Engaging People

Objective/activity

• Regular active engagement with service users and care providers to understand experiences
• Diversity and inclusion considered at all system levels
• Support delivered around individual needs of pregnant women and mother

Outcome

• Use of national and local surveys, including for Unicef UK BFI to better understand experiences of services users and care providers
• Build on success of reducing breastfeeding inequalities and identify any targeted responses that can continue to act on these

Measures

Systematic evidence base developed to assess user and care providers experiences

• Ongoing reduction in breastfeeding inequalities
• Strategic Goal 6: Creating Enabling Environments

Strategic Goal 6: Creating Enabling Environments

Objective/activity

• High level political will and support
• Positive media portrayal and wide spread advocacy for breastfeeding
• Proactive marketing strategies
• Rights based policies and approaches, at all system levels, and legislation designed to promote, protect and support breastfeeding

Outcome

• Continue to promote and advocate for breastfeeding in cross-government and cross-portfolio actions to realise population level benefits
• Develop ‘marketing playbook’ to promote, support and protect breastfeeding and breastmilk whilst promoting informed infant feeding choice and infants rights

Measures

• National indicators and ambitions include recognition of breastfeeding and infant feeding
• A dynamic and flexible approach adopted for marketing and promotion of breastfeeding and infant feeding at universal, targeted and specialist levels
• Holistic workforce approaches and collective awareness of benefits of breastfeeding across communities, business, education, and health and social care professionals