But it also means the much-loved centre has reached capacity and will have to expand or relocate in the future to accommodate any further growth.

Health Minister Simon Corbell officially opened the three new family suites, each with two beds, saying his own family had benefited from the service when both his children were babies.

"It was a lifesaver, an absolute lifesaver," he said. "So I do not underestimate the importance of the services provided here."

For 52 years the Canberra Mothercraft Society has been providing the live-in service to help, usually, mothers and babies with anything from breastfeeding to settling to ensuring their child thrives and the family unit remains strong during a stressful time.

The centre is home away from home for families seeking help for children up to three years, with the parent and child usually staying four nights.

"Having a newborn, working out all of those issues around feeding, sleeping, settling can be very challenging, very stressful and often can put a lot of stress in the household," Mr Corbell said.

"So QEII is a real respite and relief. The staff here are outstanding in terms of teaching mothers, and,indeed, fathers, how to look after their child and manage those issues around sleeping, eating and other developmental issues, so they can get back home and enjoy all the good things about having a newborn child."

The ACT Government provided $676,000 in this year's budget to provide the extra beds, boosting possible admissions per year from about 1650 to potentially 2150. Mr Corbell said it was part of an increase of $2.2 million to maternity services across the health system.

"So it is a big increase because we are continuing to see significant growth in the number of women having babies and then the demand that flows through to the services," he said.

QEII executive officer and director of nursing and midwifery Mary Kirk said Friday was a big day for the centre, with the funding providing an extra 5.4 full-time equivalent staff.

"It is exciting, we're really pleased. It brings the QEII Family Centre to full capacity which means we'll be able to respond in a really timely way to families in Canberra and the surrounding region to provide the service," she said.

"The ACT government in providing this service, actually is a world leader. What we provide here, people don't see around the globe."

Ms Kirk said she believed the centre had an excellent relationship with the government and any future needs for the service would be met, with an expansion on the Curtin site possible, because there was land available there.

"Geographically, this is the centre of Canberra so looking at that through that logic, it's a good place for it. Because services are best provided closest to where people are," she said.

"Of course, then, you need a size that has meaning and which you can run efficiently. So right now, this location works. And looking at the borders of Canberra, I imagine it will work well into the future as well."

The original Queen Elizabeth II Coronation Home for Mothers and Babies was opened in Civic in 1963. It moved to Curtin in 1997 and was renamed the Queen Elizabeth II Family Centre.

Ms Kirk said the response from families who were helped by the service was overwhelmingly positive.

"I still am moved when people say it changed their lives. That's pretty powerful," she said.

Deanne Kuhn's mother took her to QEII when she was a baby. Now Deanne was there this week with her own son, Ethan, seven months. The Bonner mum said the only way Ethan would sleep for any length of time was if she held him but since arriving at QEII on Tuesday he had been sleeping in a cot.

"I've actually been quite amazed," she said. "Even this morning, I put him in the cot, closed the door and he went to sleep on his own. It's a miracle."