How it works

We provide volunteer birth partners to support refugee and asylum seeker women who would otherwise face giving birth alone.

Here’s how it works.

Referral

Our support begins as soon as a referral is made. We accept referrals from individuals, GPs, midwives, obstetricians, voluntary sector organisations and local authorities. If you’d like to make a referral, please get in contact.

Volunteer team assigned

Once a referral is accepted, we contact our team of volunteers to find out who is available to support the woman who has been referred to us. A small team of three volunteers is assigned to each woman to support her in the final stages of pregnancy, during labour and birth, and eight weeks postnatally.

Building friendships with mum-to-be

Each volunteer will make sure they meet with the mum-to-be as much as possible in the weeks leading up to the birth. This is a very important stage, as it gives everyone a chance to get to know each other. As well as establishing friendships during this time, we clearly explain the support we offer and provide information and guidance to enable the woman we’re supporting to understand her choices and prepare for birth.

24-hour support provided during labour

A 24-hour rota is created amongst the volunteer team to cover the period when the baby is due. Since no one can predict the exact day when labour will start, the rota normally covers a three week period before and after the expected due date. Each volunteer signs up to cover an 8-hour shift within every 24 hour period. Once the woman is in established labour, the rota kicks into place and volunteers are present with the woman in the hospital during their assigned shift.

Home visits continue for 8 weeks after birth

Volunteers continue to meet with mum and baby for 8 weeks after the birth. We make sure she has everything she needs, check in to see whether she requires any extra support and signpost to other services where appropriate.