My mum has said that she thinks she'll have to bring my dd into work for feed at lunches as she is refusing point blank to take a bottle or beaker (though I've always been there so maybe it's just she knows mummy's around to provide the goodies?!). My mum drives so I'm debating feeding dd in the carpark at work (I've fed her in the car loads of times so can be really discreet about it)

lol i am a bit harsh in my posts, but thats just because my work are a pile of Sh!ts and i came back from a meeting tostart a greiveince against them when i came on here lol

any ways, you do need somewhere that has electricity supply and a place close by to sterilise (doesnt need to be in same room, but is preferable, to save u any embarressment u may get by people asking you what u have and what its for and how does it works lol, ive had those questions!)

what kind of job do u do? what is the premisses like? could u go in and have a look around, find out where everything is, and see about getting a room 'adapted' for u? like a small room that can fit a first aid/beauty salon type bed, a chair, a small fridge, a cupboard to store pump/sterilising kit and hopefully have a sink either in the room or near by, but not the toilet sinks...  tell them it needs to be water that is safe to drink....

as for taking my advice and asking them if they would eat/drink in a toilet, it has possibly helped that now they will be thinking of it as food and not just something you are doing to get legal paid time off.

also you cna take lo into work to feed, but the company are not covered by insurance for the child, so if anything happened u couldnt raise a claim against them (i.s that picture thats always threatened to fallon someone does, but its ur child it falls on and not the idiot down the corridor, u cnat claim for anything, yet if it was the idiot they would be able to as insurance has them covered by working there...) or as has previously been mentioned, you cna go home ot feed, again all paid time. so if uz cant get somewhere, you could mention it to them.

Hi All,

Thankyou.

He called me yesterday and was very polite but basically said would you eat in the toilet and would you drink milk that had not been refridgerated? He apologised and said i am the only person ever to ask about this. I also have an electric pump and explained ideally i would need an electricity supply.

He is going to come back to me but i am due back in 19 days. i informed him at the end of June.

would write more but lo needs a feed xx

Like the others have said try and keep friendly as I think they are trying to help. A lot of people don't understand about breastfeeding (spesh men lol!).   I think most places try their best to be accommodating but depending on the offices I don't think it's always possible. I think sometimes it better to stay calm and friendly with employer about it and maybe try and come to an agreement that you express in an office area if it's available (I don't know if it's poss where you work). It can be so hard especially when it's something so important.

When I went back to work after my ds (nearly 4 now) it wasn't even mentioned as far as I know my firm doesn't have a breastfeeding policy. We did have a toilet with a seperate bit with a seat where you could sit & I actually expresed a couple of times there. Only thing was I had an electric breastpump which luckily took batteries but it made a noise a bit like a vibrator lol. Don't know what people walking by must have thought.

However I was really lucky that my health visitor had been on breastfeeding training courses and was absolutely superb u could ask her anything and she'd help. She told me that the body is extremely clever and breastfeeding is very adaptable if you are back at work and not able to breast feed your baby or express your body will automatically adjust the milk supply during the times you are not able to breastfeed/express. I found for a couple of days after I decided I wasn't going to express at work I had really full breasts and had to change pads more often but then after that it was fine. I found I could still breast feed ds well all evening and morning and express in the evening as well so there was milk for the next day. I also had no problems with the weekends and always had enough milk. The only thing was when we went away and I was breastfeeding sometimes the next day I was back in work my breasts would be a bit fuller than usual but nothing too bad. I breastfed my ds till he was 18 months old and I went back to work when he was 6 months old so it really does work.

Also the couple of times that I did breastfeed I took a cool bag with me (thermos bag which goes in the fridge plus blue block things which used to go in the freezer) they seemed to work fine and when I got home I popped them in the freezer ready for when needed.

Breastfeeding is amazing and so extremely adaptable to changing environment. I know ideally places of work should offer more for breastfeeding mothers but

I'm now breastfeeding my dd and due back to work in Oct so I'm hoping to be able to do the same again.

I agree with the others, keep it friendly, why dont you ask for a meeting to discuss it and take the HSE guidance with you.  They should do a Risk Assesment on you BF at work and this would highlight any issues and give you an opportunity to feed into the process.

Do you live far from your workplace, maybe a reasonable adjustment could be for you to be able to go home?  Is there a disused office in the building at all?  They have to give you a room with a lock on the door.  I got to use the Chief Executives office as that was the only room with a lock on the door!!! 

If you have any resistance phone the ACAS or HSE helplines for an answer.

Request a copy of the BF policy if it has dissappeared that does sound suspect. 

Good luck

I agree with Rosie - keep it as friendly as possible whilst your employer is looking to try and help.  These areas of employment law are extremely new and it would look to see if the employer were being reasonable - which it appears they are trying to be.  Fair enough if you have queries and concerns - go back to them and raise them.  Good luck.

in scotland the only guidelines from the SHE is that thier is a place to lie down.

and that their is a fridge. of ur own.  u can not use a 'public' fridge due to the risk of cross contamination

do not accept a toilet. politely ask them if they would eat thier food in a toilet?. u may not be feeding your lo in a toilet but u are exposing their food to the airborn germs of a toilet.

in my work, they have given me access to the first aid room, it has one of those 'bed's' in it, im the only bf mum there so i have soul use of teh fridge...

search acas, and ask them if they have a policy that covers ur area...

this link is great

http://www.hse.gov.uk/pubns/indg373.pdf

clearly states what they have to provide by law

Your employer is required to provide

I can't say I'd be delighted with a toilet being offered, but I have to say the response does read to me like they are trying to be accomodating- I think they are just misinformed - e.g. the question about the fridge they obviously don't understand much about the process. I would try and keep it friendly because they do appear to be trying. Just point out, as you have done, that a toilet isn't the most hygenic place and hopefully they will come up with something more suitable. My understanding from friends who have returned to work is that they have to provide regular breaks and a private, suitable place for expressing.

firstly sorry if i go on as i am extremly upset and need advice.

i have an 8mth little girl and i am due to go back to work on 16th sept. i informed them at the end of june i want to express and they said they would get back to me in good time, i emailed today to chase and it turns out he emailed me on 11th aug on my work email address duh! so he forwarded me what he has said:

"bonnie,

i have identified that the newly refurbished shower & toilet facility on
the ground floor of dukes keep can be used by you when you return to work.
this area has a sink and seat so should be comfortable and provide you the
water you need for sterilisation.

i have yet to identify storage for the expressed milk.  can you confirm if
this needs to be refrigerated or not?"

i am completely disgusted as i have read that toilets do not constitute some where clean etc... i work for a world selling company it is massive and they are doing this!

the reply i wrote was:

thank you"

can anyone give me any advice as i have since found out they have "deleted" the breastfeeding policy from our intranet as i believe i am the only one to ever use it as i have a lot of friends in the company trying to get copies. from what i can gather it is not law but they could get in trouble sex discrimintation etc... please i really need help and seem lost on the net.

thankyou bonnie