Birth trauma sadly affects far too many women and children - myself amongst them. This is why, after the traumatic birth of my daughter in 2022, I set up the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Birth Trauma on the 12th of July 2023. The APPG brought together men and women from across society who were passionate about ensuring mothers and children do not have to go through trauma at the very moment when they should be happiest.
I am proud to say that the APPG has achieved enormous success. We collected over 1,400 witness testimonies from mothers, fathers, medical professional, and academic experts. The first national inquiry into birth trauma in British history was established, running over seven sessions and hearing testimony from 44 witnesses. In May 2024 - only 10 months after the founding of the APPG - we released our report: 'Listen to Mums: Ending the Postcode Lottery on Perinatal Care'. The audience was filled with those who had supported our work, and we were delighted to have the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, Victoria Atkins, speak at our event.
The Government immediately accepted many of our recommendations, and, if re-elected, I will continue to campaign for full acceptance of them.
