Maternal health
See below for maternal health services and support which includes pre-pregnancy, pre-natal and postnatal care.
The City of London activities timetable displays information about the regular free events for families taking place across City of London libraries, including breastfeeding and parent support groups.
For information about further events, please see the What's On section on this website (see related links).
For a downloadable copy of the timetable click here.
If you have any questions, please contact: FIS@cityoflondon.gov.uk
For more information about breastfeeding support, please visit:
Breast and Infant Feeding Group
First Wednesday of the month, 11am - 1pm
Artizan Street Library and Community Centre - City of London
Breast and Infant Feeding Group
Third Wednesday of the month, 10am - 12pm
Library | Barbican
The Neaman Practice is a London-based NHS primary care provider offering comprehensive health services in a patient-centred environment. To find out about their antenatal services visit their website: Antenatal Care - The Neaman Practice
Or our webpage: The Neaman Practice - City of London Family Information Service
Health visitors are nurses or midwives with specialist training in family and public health. They help parents and their families to improve health and wellbeing during pregnancy, after birth and all the way through until your child is five.
For more information on how City families can access health visiting support: Health Visiting Service - City and Hackney - City of London Family Information Service
Who we are:
We are the charity that supports people as they become parents. We're here for you through pregnancy, birth, and early parenthood.
What we do:
We connect, inform and support parents through our antenatal and postnatal courses, bringing people together to share information and experiences of pregnancy, birth, and life with a new baby. Our peer support programmes are there for parents who may be under-served by society or who are experiencing challenges with mental health, social isolation, or other unmet needs.
We host thousands of community-based events across the UK. If you’re a new or expectant parent, chances are you’ve joined one of our Bumps & Babies Groups or visited a Baby Café to access infant feeding support. Many of these activities are run by our volunteers, who give more than 70,000 hours of outstanding community service each year.
We support parents to make informed decisions that feel right for them. We provide access to evidence-based information through our website, Parent Hub and free Infant Feeding Support Line 365-days a year.
More information:
For more information, please visit the NCT website: About us | The National Childbirth Trust | NCT
Homerton Healthcare Midwifery Services
We provide maternity care for nearly 6000 women and their babies each year during pregnancy, labour, birth and up until one month after birth. During and after pregnancy, we offer both midwifery-led and consultant-led care and our teams are multidisciplinary, which means all the care you need is provided within the maternity wards. Our midwives look after women at the hospital antenatal clinic, local GP surgeries and children’s centres.
We provide a home birth service and hospital-based care during labour and birth. In addition, Homerton is a leading regional neonatal centre and we will be able to provide the highest quality specialist care for your baby after birth if needed.
Please note, we are a teaching hospital and as such, students work alongside qualified practitioners in providing your care. You will be asked for your consent for the student to be present or participate in your care.We appreciate that this is challenging time and that you may be anxious about attending Homerton or about the care you will receive when you are with us.
Whether you are attending for antenatal appointments, scans, during labour, birth or the early postnatal period, you will be met with dedicated professionals who will have the skills, resources and equipment, to provide a safe and caring environment for you and your baby.
Maternity care is essential and has been developed over many years to reduce complications in pregnant women and babies. We follow Public Health England infection prevention and control guidance stringently, use appropriate PPE and have made significant changes to both the environment of the hospital and visiting arrangements promote social distancing. It is therefore vital that you continue to see us for all planned care.
It is particularly important that you do not delay seeking help if you notice any emergency signs, such as significant changes in the baby’s movement, pain, swelling, redness, ache or tenderness in one leg, fluid leakage or bleeding, significant itching, heart palpitations, persistent headache, blurred vision, flashing lights or pain under the ribs. If anything listed occur, please call Delivery suite immediately on 0208 510 7351 or 0208 510 7352.
Visit website: Maternity services | Homerton Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust
Homerton Maternity Helpline
You can contact a midwife for advice or support via the Homerton Maternity Helpline on: 0208 510 5955 from 10am - 6pm each day or via email on huh-tr.maternityhelpline@nhs.net
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PANDAS is a charity with a mission: ‘To be the UK’s most recognised and trusted support service for families and their networks who may be suffering with perinatal mental illness, including prenatal (antenatal) and postnatal depression.’
Our aim is to make sure no parent, family or carer feels alone. We have a variety of support services available to ensure help is delivered in a way that is right for you. No one suffering any form of mental illness should feel they’re on their own.
We offer motivational, educational and positive content through our social media channels, which adds to our value for the parents who need our help the most.
PANDAS Foundation values difference and diversity and does not discriminate on the grounds of age, gender, sexual preference, orientation, marital status, race, religion, colour, national origin, disability, heritage or political belief.
For more information: Home – PANDAS Foundation UK
Who we are:
The Perinatal Service and Margaret Oates Mother and Baby Unit is an Adult Mental Health Service working with women who have moderate to severe mental health difficulties in pregnancy or within the first year after child birth. The mental-health difficulty may be pre-existing, have started during pregnancy or started after childbirth.
What we do:
Members of the team have different professional backgrounds including; nursing, psychology, and medicine. This experienced and diverse team has particular experience in the care and treatment of women from diverse cultures. A range of opportunities to engage mothers, infants and families in the process of recovery are offered.
If there is a previous, current or family history of mental health difficulties, a woman can agree to a referral to this service.
Tel: 020 8510 8151/020 8510 8552
Website: Perinatal Service (City & Hackney) | East London NHS Foundation Trust
Address:
City and Hackney Centre for Mental Health
Perinatal Mental Health Service
Homerton Row
Hackney
Maternity Action is the UK’s maternity rights charity dedicated to promoting, protecting and enhancing the rights of all pregnant women, new mothers and their families to employment, social security and health care.
We provide free advice on maternity and parental rights at work, pay and benefits to pregnant women, new parents, trade unions and advisers.
We offer free and confidential expert advice to women who have received an invoice for maternity care and/or who have been told that they will be charged for NHS maternity care.
We provide training and support to health professionals, advisers, community workers and volunteers supporting vulnerable migrant women during pregnancy and their child’s first year.
For more information: Home - Maternity Action
The helpline offers friendly, non-judgemental, independent, evidence based breastfeeding support and information to anyone in the UK who needs it. The helpline is provided by the Breastfeeding Network and the Association of Breastfeeding Mothers.
Hours - 24 hours a day, every day of the year. Contact - Phone: 0300 100 0212
If you’ve chosen to have your baby without healthcare professionals present (sometimes called a “free birth”), this guide explains the simple steps you need to take afterward. This is different from births in hospitals, NHS home births, or unexpected births before help arrives.
For more information visit: https://www.england.nhs.uk/publication/birth-notification-process-for-unassisted-births/