Please follow the links below for information about our last 22nd Anniversary conference. We also run infant sleep webinars for individuals and groups through our sister site, Basis.
Professor Helen Ball’s long-awaited book How Babies Sleep: a factful guide to the first 365 days and nights will be published by Penguin Random House on May 29th 2025. To celebrate the Durham Infancy & Sleep Centre are holding a conference and book launch event on Saturday May 10th 2025 at the Radisson Blu Hotel, Durham.
How Babies Work is a parent-facing event showcasing the work of academics and practitioners who devote their time to helping parents understand how their babies work. Have a look at our Speakers below!
From feeding to sleeping to crying to carrying to the first post-birth behaviours, this event will provide parents-to-be and new parents with a wealth of information about what to expect from their babies and how to find balance between meeting their babies’ needs and their own. Babies are, of course, welcome!
Practitioners are welcome, and certificates of attendance will be provided for those purchasing tickets at the practitioner rate.
For more information about tickets and prices, and to book your place, please click here.
We have a great range of speakers for our learning event, covering how babies work from feeding to sleeping to crying to carrying to the first post-birth behaviours. Have a read about what to expect!
Speaker One: Dr Kajsa Brimdyr, Lead Ethnographic Researcher for Healthy Children Project, a US based non-profit NGO.
Dr Brimdyr will be talking about the amazing ability of newborns and the 9 instinctive stages that they go through during the first hour after birth.
Speaker Two: Olivia Hinge (Midwife and Lactation Consultant) – more information coming soon!
Speaker Three: Professor Helen Ball, Professor of Anthropology and Director of the Infancy & Sleep Centre (DISC) at Durham University.
Professor Ball’s talk is called, ‘What parents need to know about how babies sleep’ and will explore how the evolved biology of human babies shapes their sleep behaviour, while the rapidly changing economic and social lives of adults shape their expectations of sleep (their own and their baby’s). Professor Ball will challenge common myths about baby sleep and discuss ways to avoid conflict over sleep patterns and night-time infant care
Speaker Four: Dr Michiko Yoshida (PhD), Visiting Research Scholar at Hokkaido University Faculty of Health Sciences and a Midwife specialising in Breastfeeding Care.
Dr Yoshida’s talk, entitled: “How Do Babies Sleep in Japan? : Co-Sleeping as a Japanese Cultural Practice, The Influence of Global Co-Sleeping Controversies, and Our Research Findings”, will cover Japan’s long history of families raising infants with co-sleeping in the same room, and discuss the reasons why Japan has one of the lowest incidence of SIDS in the world. The talk will also explore the findings of Dr Yoshida’s recent work findings on how co-sleeping contributes to sleep development in early infancy (Yoshida, et al. Early Hum Dev. 2024).
Speaker Five: Dr Rosie Knowles, Practicing GP, Founder of the Sheffield Sling Surgery and Library
Dr Knowles’ talk, “How babies like to be carried (and how to carry them well!)” will cover the many benefits of babywearing to both baby and parent. She will also discuss some of the common questions and challenges faced by parents who want to use slings - such as "How do I know what sling is right to use? How do I know that my baby is safe in the sling? Can I feed my child in the sling?”
Speaker Six: Dr Vicky Thomas, Consultant Paediatrician at Newcastle’s Great North Children’s Hospital
Dr Thomas' talk will cover how common it is for healthcare professionals to see crying and unsettled babies in clinical practice, and the impact of this on families. Vicky will cover evidence based strategies for helping manage this challenging and stressful situation.
By Car
There is free (but limited) parking available at the Radisson Blu Hotel in Durham.
There is also parking available at:
By Train
Durham Train Station is less than 1 mile from the Radisson Blu Hotel, and it takes around 15 minutes to walk from the station to the Radisson Blu.
If you would like to stay overnight and explore the lovely city of Durham, there are a few options for where you can stay, all within walking distance from the conference:
Radisson Blu Hotel, Durham
Premier Inn, Durham
The Kingslodge Inn
The Mariott Durham
Hotel Indigo Durham
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