Policy Activity

Baby Loss Awareness Week 2021 Debate in Westminster

This year, MPs held a debate in September to mark Baby Loss Awareness Week (a bit early as Parliament was on a a break for the party conferences during the Week itself). There were powerful speeches from many MPs sharing their own and their constituents’ experiences.

They raised the need for more staff and resources in maternity services, better bereavement and mental health care after pregnancy and baby loss and more action to reduce avoidable deaths.  

The Government response to the debate was made by new minister, Maria Caulfield MP. She committed to further action on funding for bereavement suites, specialist staff and training, and we will be holding the Government to this.

You can watch the debate here and read a transcript here.

MPs attending the BLAW2021 Debate in the House of Commons

Campaigning success on mental health support for bereaved mothers

In April 2021, NHS England announced more mental health support for bereaved mothers. Our 2019 Out of Sight, Out of Mind campaign called for the Government to take action to ensure that all parents who experience pregnancy or baby loss and need specialist psychological support can access it, at a time and place that is right for them, free of charge, wherever they live.

The 26 new hubs take us much closer to achieving that by bringing together maternity services, reproductive health and psychological therapy under one roof, including for those bereaved by the death of a baby.

Read the Out of Sight, Out of Mind Report (2019)

Baby Loss Awareness Week 2020

In 2020, we called for action to stop partners being excluded from pregnancy, maternity and neonatal services due to COVID-19. Thousands of people took action to raise this with their local hospital and asked their MPs to attend a Parliamentary debate on the issue.

We are very grateful to all the MPs who spoke so openly and honestly about their own experiences – showing us that there are MPs who truly understand how it feels when a pregnancy or baby is lost, and that they will advocate for vital action from Government, even when it is personally challenging.

You can watch the debate on Parliament TV here and read the full transcript here.