Enabling perinatal volunteering

There is overwhelming evidence that volunteering and peer support has a unique and valuable contribution to make to ‘Better Births’ outcomes (Spiby et al, 2015; Parents 1st and Institute for Voluntary Action Research, 2016; Renaisi, 2016; McLeish and Redshaw, 2017a; 2017b). Across the country, there are excellent examples of quality peer support initiatives working alongside professionals. Through referring vulnerable women to trusted and well-managed programmes, midwives have a valuable resource at hand to enable a smooth transition through pregnancy, birth and beyond.

Quality peer support initiatives are making real improvements to personalised care. It furhte enhances the value that professionals bring. We know that when these initiatives are managed, resourced and delivered well, there are huge benefits not only to mothers, fathers, partners and babies but also to professionals involved in their care. Volunteers also get a deep sense of personal satisfaction from supporting women during this critical life change.

Informal peer support is very different to professional support and helps relieve pressure on public services. Statutory maternity services are under strain, with health visitors, early years workers and social workers unable to provide the individualised personal support that many parents need. Furthermore, marginalised parents can be wary of professionals. Informal support from a well-trained and supervised volunteer can help bridge this gap. A trusting peer relationship can be built that helps a vulnerable pregnant woman navigate and engage with services when she otherwise might not. Supporting her to communicate her needs more effectively with professionals involved in her care can make all the difference. Improved wellbeing of vulnerable pregnant women means healthier pregnancies, less complicated births and happier babies.

Supporting the ‘Better Births’ vision, the 2016 ‘National Maternity Review’ report sets out a clear vision: for maternity services to be designed in a way which puts women, their babies and their families at the centre. Informal support and reassurance from another (trained, supervised and carefully recruited) parent who listens and builds trust can make all the difference. It builds confidence, reduces social isolation and helps nip early difficulties in the bud. As intermediaries, peer supporters are also in an ideal position to contribute to maternity voice partnerships and enable more women to have their voices heard.

Drawing on personal experience or shared characteristics, quality peer support can provide knowledge, emotional support, practical help and social interaction. Mothers, fathers and partners feel supported, prepare for changes ahead and feel less stressed.

One example is a community parent perinatal volunteering model tried and tested by health visitors, midwives and volunteers over the past eight years in three sites across England (Essex, Derby and Tower Hamlets). The peer support (home, community and hospital) starts as early as possible in pregnancy, continues during labour and birth, and during the early months post-birth. One-to-one support empowers parents to make informed choices and most of those who receive informal support see statistically significant improvements across a range of outcomes, and in being able to access community services and to confidently communicate with professionals involved in their care.

Local health professionals find the additional support invaluable:

The emotional and practical support that volunteer peer supporters provide during labour and birth helps take the strain off midwives, especially if the woman is vulnerable or has no partner. Peer support during the postnatal period allows mothers, fathers and partners to reflect on their birth experience and feel supported in making their adjustments to becoming parents and getting to know their baby. Volunteer training in practical baby care, breastfeeding and emotional wellbeing helps mothers to recover after the birth and avoid the onset of depression. Crucially, volunteers have their coordinator at hand if a parent's or baby's needs lie outside the boundaries of their role. Coordinators carry out an important safeguarding role and draw relevant professionals in at an early stage (health visiting, perinatal mental health services, social care and local support groups) which helps to prevent escalation of need. Sadly, it is still the norm that the profound impact that peer support can make remains largely unrecognised and many initiatives struggle to survive.

Parents 1st UK is a new charity with a mission to change things. We want more quality perinatal peer support initiatives to flourish but we understand the barriers, such as time, resources and knowledge, that can get in the way. We have created a new open access website that shares the community parent perinatal volunteer model and everything we have learnt about making it work in practice over several decades.

Website users can download free step-by-step guidance from designing, setting up and delivering a new perinatal volunteering initiative to reviewing, improving and adapting it. There is a wealth of free resources to download to hit the ground running. Anyone can adapt the community parent volunteering model to suit their local context. In return, we ask users to share their experiences and any adaptations they make so that others can benefit. We warmly invite others delivering perinatal volunteering initiatives to use the new website to share their volunteering models too. Our vision is an online hub where everyone can connect, collaborate and learn from each other, and make quality perinatal volunteering flourish. It's time to move towards a mindset where we work together and to enable more programmes to flourish across the UK. The benefits of quality peer support to mothers, fathers, babies and communities are profound. Every parent deserves support and every baby deserves the best possible start in life.