Tongue Tie Specialists - Assessment & Division

Swindon based Clinic

Home visits serving Swindon, Bristol, Bath, Gloucester, Cirencester, Stroud, Chippenham, Marlborough, Trowbridge and Oxford areas

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Clinic Info


About Us


FAQs



Clinic Info

 

91% of families seen within a week

Baby Acorn Clinic offers clinic appointments in Swindon and home visits across the region. The Clinic is at Nexus Business Centre, 6 Darby Close, Cheney Manor Industrial Estate, Swindon SN2 2PN.

During the appointment we can explore with you whether there are any other factors which are affecting the feeding or whether your baby has a tongue tie. If it is appropriate, we can perform the Frenulotomy at the same visit if you wish. We will support you with the feed afterwards.

Clinic visits are typically available 4 days a week, with easy instant online booking and clear pricing structure. Click here to book online now.

Altenatively home visits are also available, including evenings and weekends to suit your family. Home visits serving Swindon, Bristol, Bath, Gloucester, Cirencester, Stroud, Chippenham, Marlborough, Trowbridge and Oxford areas. Telephone 01793 205 345 for availability.

PLEASE NOTE

We do not see babies older than 12 months and we do not divide lip ties.

For more information see this link about lip ties ATP Position Statements


Before your Appointment

Before your appointment, it is important you complete a pre-appointment information form. This is to so we can consider any relevant medical concerns before you travel.

Please contact us to arrange a phone or video chat beforehand, if anything is unclear.

Telephone 01793 205 345

At the clinic a full tongue-tie assessment will be carried out using the Hazelbaker score of your baby's tongue appearance and function. If required, and after discussion and consent, the tongue tie is divided and the baby comes straight to you for a feed.

For details of the clinic visit please read the Tongue Tie Parent Information Leaflet.

Follow up: Tongue tie division package includes a follow up phone call/text or email in the next few days to check how you and your baby are getting on. We offer further support for two weeks if needed by email/text/videocall. Most families do not need further follow-up, but please get in contact with your practitioner if feeding has not improved rapidly. This virtual follow-up support is included in the consultation fee.

If you require an on-going face to face follow up, please contact us. The charge or assessment for possible reattachment is £60 an hour.

4 weeks following the process you will be offered a short questionnaire. Completing this may help improve care for other mums with similar feeding experiences. Your feedback matters.

Don't forget you can also visit the wonderful free NHS breastfeeding support groups for ongoing support over at Breastmates and Mum2Mum where available.

 

About Us

 
Angela Carter Photo

Angela Carter

I have over 30 years of experience as a Registered NHS Midwife. I have been a Team Leader within the community midwifery setting, Clinical Lead in a Birth Centre, and a Feeding Specialist at the Great Western Hospital in Swindon. I have recently, in 2024, re-certified as a Lactation Consultant

Cathy and I trained together in 2013 in tongue tie assesment and division at Frome NHS tongue tie clinic. As a Tongue Tie Practitioner and a Midwife I enjoy using my skills to support and help families on their feeding journey.

In my leisure time I enjoy walking my dog, swimming and yoga. I also enjoy time with my family and grandchildren.


Lucy Smith Photo

Lucy Smith

I have been a registered midwife since 2004. I started my career working at GWH on delivery suite, then the antenatal and postnatal ward. In 2016 I became a community midwife and have enjoyed looking after many families during this time.

I recently trained with the University of Wolverhampton to become a tongue tie practitioner. My hope is to provide support and advice for families however they wish to feed their babies. I hope to continue training to become a lactation consultant.

In my spare time I have a busy family life with my husband and 3 children. I love going on walks with my dog and watching a good Netflix documentary.


Steph Willis Photo

Steph Willis

I have been a registered paediatric nurse since completing my training in 2020, and have been working on an acute children's ward since qualifying. I work with families and children from birth to 18 years and I am part of a team of infant feeding leads to support families with their own personal feeding journeys. I really enjoy being a children's nurse and working to help and support families with the joys and challenges they may face.

I have since completed a course with Wolverhampton University to become a tongue tie practitioner so I can further support families. I plan to continue in my study to become a lactation consultant.

I have a busy household with my husband and two young children. I enjoy spending time with friends and family, walking our dog, eating out and watching a good film.


Nat Fowler Photo

Nat Fowler

I have been a registered midwife since 2003. I completed and consolidated my training in Winchester and Eastleigh NHS Trust before joining GWH in 2008. I have predominantly worked as a Community Midwife duing my career - I enjoy working with women and their families and supporting them through their pregnancy journey and beyond.

I have recently completed my training with Wolverhampton University to become a tongue tie practitioner. I hope to be able to use my skills to further support families in the feeding journey. In the future I would like to train to become an IBCLC.

When not at work I enjoy travelling with my husband and two children.

 

FAQs

What is a Tongue Tie?

This is when the frenulum (the strip of tissue connecting the tongue to the floor of the mouth) is short, inelastic or thickened.

The frenulum can be joined from the tip of the tongue to anywhere along the underside of the tongue. It can make the tongue look 'flattened' or 'heart' shaped and can restrict the movement of the tongue.

Infant Symptoms

  • Poor latch/difficulty in staying attached
  • Gumming the nipple
  • Ineffective milk transfer
  • 'Fussy' feeding
  • Slipping off the breast
  • Continuous feeding cycle
  • Poor or slow weight gain
  • 'Clicking' noises when feeding (at breast or bottle)
  • Long feeds up to an hour or more or very short feeds under 5 mins

Maternal symptoms

  • 'Chomping' the nipple
  • Ineffective milk transfer
  • 'Fussy' feeding
  • Poor or slow weight gain/sometimes excessive weight gain
  • 'Clicking' noises when feeding
  • Long feeds
  • Mastitis /engorgement

The above are some examples of symptoms a tongue-tie can present with, but they are not exclusive. Equally the symptoms described above may also have other causes. Some babies who appear to have a tongue-tie, have no problem feeding or growing.

Why is it a Problem?

For some babies this is not a problem and it needs to be assessed on an individual baby as to whether it is affecting the feeding.

Can anything be done about it?

There is a quick and simple procedure that can be performed called frenulotomy / tongue tie division/ tongue tie release, which helps in the majority of cases.

If a tongue tie division is offered at your baby’s appointment, here is some useful information for you to consider beforehand.

You are required to read the Tongue Tie Parent Information Leaflet before your baby’s appointment, it covers the tongue tie procedure and any possible risks.

Will I be offered any follow up care?

Tongue tie division package includes a follow up phone call/text or email in the next few days to check how you and your baby are getting on and offer further support if needed by email/text/videocall. Most families do not need further follow-up, but please get in contact with your practitioner if feeding has not improved rapidly. This virtual follow-up support for a 2 week period is included in the consultation fee.

Follow up text/email/video follow up is included in the price. If you require an on-going face to face follow up the charge or assessment for possible reattachment is £60 an hour. If required please book a standard consultation and mark it "Follow up appointment"

Follow up text/email/video follow up is included in the price. If you require an on-going face to face follow up the charge or assessment for possible reattachment is £60 an hour. If required please book a standard consultation and mark it "Follow up appointment"

Sometimes we may reccommend seeing an Osteopath to support your baby. Search the Register - General Osteopathic Council

What types of tongue tie do you divide?

All grades of tongue tie can be divided, if appropriate, including the less obvious ones.

Do you divide tongue tie on bottle fed babies?

YES. Sometimes bottle fed babies can find feeding difficult with a tongue tie, although they don’t need to use the tongue quite as much as breastfed baby. We have seen many babies feeding much better on a bottle straight away after tongue tie division. Typical signs a bottle fed baby is struggling with restricted tongue movements are:

  • Leaking milk for either side of the teat during a feed
  • Long, slow feeds
  • Coughing and spluttering a lot with a faster flow teat
  • Windy “reflux” type issues. These babies will typically be very windy, as the seal around the bottle teat is not good
  • Slow weight gain

There is no formal evidence yet that bottle fed babies feed better after frenulotomy but this is because no one has collected the data. The majority of tongue tie practitioners around the UK divide tongue tie on bottle fed babies and audit their practice, and will tell us that babies usually improve after frenulotomy.

Does tongue tie affect speech?

This is much debated, and research can support either a yes or no answer. No one wants to divide a baby’s tongue tie ”just in case” there may be speech problems later. NICE (National Institute for Clinical Excellence) guidance allows us to divide tongue ties for feeding difficulties only. If your child does need tongue tie division at a later stage for speech problems with an ENT surgeon, it can still be done on an older child but involves a quick general anaesthetic and possibly an overnight hospital stay.

Wasn’t my baby checked for tongue tie at the new birth check?

"Full assessment and recognition of tongue tie is not part of the standard medical or midwifery training, or the NIPE (Newborn Infant Physical Examination) training. Tongue tie checks are not routine at birth."

Some parents assume this will always be checked for at birth NIPE but this will depend on your maternity provider policies. Some providers feel that checking all babies, if they are not having feeding difficulties, will lead to unnecessary concern. Examining the tongue appearance and function in detail is not part of the standards NIPE training at present. You are required to read the Tongue Tie Parent Information Leaflet before your baby’s appointment, it covers the tongue tie procedure and any possible risks.

If you think your baby has a tongue-tie, please contact us to book a private assessment with us, or ask your midwife, health visitor, breastfeeding advisor or GP to assess and refer to you your local NHS provider.

Clinic appointment: £110 for assessment, plus £100 if division of a tongue tie is completed.

Face to Face Follow up: £60 per hour for in-clinic follow up consultation/support

Home visit: (Within SN postcodes) £210 for assessment, plus £100 if division of a tongue tie is completed

Booking is available online via this website, by calling us at 01793 205 345 or emailing us at admin@kubemedical.co.uk for assistance and availability.

Assessment appointments are invoiced in advance, with payment to be completed in advance by payment link. Payment for division, if required, can be made by cash or card at the clinic

You are required to read the Tongue Tie Parent Information Leaflet before your baby’s appointment, it covers the tongue tie procedure and any possible risks

Refunds and Cancellations

Please be aware that we ask for 24 hours to cancel ongoing appointments. If something crops up and you need to rearrange an appointment with less than 24 hours notice we don’t mind, but there is a £20 charge.

Missed appointments are charged at full price.

Payment is due, in full, immediately following the appointment.

Cancellation by Kube Medical Limited

Kube Medical Limited reserves the right to cancel any appointments, in case of emergency circumstances. In the unlikely event that this should occur, an alternative appointment will always be made as soon as possible and at your convenience.

In order to fulfil our services to you Kube Medical Limited will need to collect some information about you. We take your privacy and our obligations under data protection legislation very seriously. We are also obligated under law as a healthcare provider to maintain certain records for significant periods of time as regulated by the professional bodies in the footer below.

How we use your information

  • We collect and hold data about you and your baby for the purposes of providing safe and effective healthcare
  • We will use non-identifiable patient data for audit purposes and may need to share these with partner organisations e.g. Association of Tongue tie Practitioners and the CQC
  • We will only share your information with outside agencies in very rare circumstances, for example if we are concerned about your safety or your baby’s safety. Our separate safeguarding policy is available on request
  • If you do not want your information to be used for any purpose beyond providing your care please let us know so we can amend your record appropriately

Please find our Data and Privacy Policy here

If you have a complaints or feedback about our any part of our service, please contact us.

Complaints can also be made directly to the midwives and nurses governing body: The Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC).


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