BaBi Wakefield
BaBi Wakefield
BaBi Wakefield is an exciting research project that aims to create a picture of local people’s health and lifestyles over time.
It is a long-term study that uses research to help find out how we might create a healthier environment for families across the Wakefield district to enjoy.
Starting during pregnancy, the data that is routinely collected about mums and babies is linked together to provide a wider picture of the factors affecting local family’s health and wellbeing. This includes information from health, social and education services, for example baby’s birth weight and height, or as blood pressure measurements during pregnancy.
Researchers use the data to investigate key questions around the health of people living in the district, looking for ways in which we could make improvements to help local people. Over time, this will provide really useful information to help us develop local services. Participants may also be invited to help with other research studies on particular issues.
One of the four key priorities for Wakefield District is giving every child the best start in life. BaBi provides an opportunity to explore whether patterns in routinely available data can be identified and used to help flag early signals of poor child health and wellbeing, and make service improvements and changes in policy.
The concept started in Bradford, where it is known as Born in Bradford (BiB4ALL).
This short video explains how the research study works and what benefits there are for local families.
BaBi Wakefield leaflet [pdf] 3MB
Our priorities
To build a local resource for future research and contribute to the development of local, regional and national resources in maternal and child health and wellbeing.
- To look for patterns which may help identify early indications on poor health and wellbeing.
- To link together data which is routinely collected by multiple services.
- To investigate how the health and wellbeing of mothers and children develops over time.
- To share information with all women booking maternity services across our district.
- To include more women in BaBi Wakefield every year.