Nhs Directed Pregnant Women To Controversial Free Birth Society Via Charity

The NHS has been directing pregnant women to a website that connected them to nan Free Birth Society, an organisation that has been linked to babe deaths astir nan world aft promoting labour without aesculapian support.

A number of NHS trusts are directing women who are contemplating a “free birth” to a kindness website that until Monday referred to FBS podcasts arsenic a root of “empowering stories” that tin thief British women “preparing for their ain birth”.

It contained a nexus to nan FBS podcast, which aesculapian experts pass is being utilized to radicalise women pinch misinformation.

FBS advocates an utmost type of free birth, different known arsenic unassisted birth. It advises mothers not to usage doctors aliases midwives and suggests they debar gestation scans.

The multimillion-dollar business, tally by erstwhile doulas Emilee Saldaya and Yolande Norris Clark, has a successful podcast, Instagram following, show and online schools for commencement attendants.

Screengrab from nan FBS website promoting its services. Photograph: Free Birth Society website

The prevalence of freebirthing is debased successful nan UK, but is believed to beryllium connected nan rise, fuelled successful portion by distrust of maternity services and fears of an overly medicalised attack to birth.

However, experts person warned that galore FBS claims are astatine likelihood pinch evidence-based aesculapian advice. Saldaya and Norris-Clark person described aesculapian attempts astatine newborn resuscitation arsenic a shape of “sabotage”, and claimed that doctors and midwives often sexually battle women successful hospitals.

On Saturday, an investigation by nan Guardian identified 48 cases of late-term stillbirths aliases neonatal deaths aliases different forms of superior harm involving mothers aliases commencement attendants who look to person been linked to FBS. In 18 of those cases, location is grounds FBS played a important domiciled successful nan mother aliases commencement attendant’s decision-making, starring to perchance avoidable tragedies.

Now nan Guardian tin uncover really nan NHS has been directing women towards FBS contented recommended by nan Association for Improvements successful nan Maternity Services (Aims), a kindness that campaigns connected UK maternity care.

Until this summer, nan NHS web page entitled “Where to springiness birth: nan options” directed women considering unassisted commencement to a factsheet from Aims. When women clicked connected nan link, nan factsheet recommended nan FBS podcast.

“The Freebirth Society is simply a US-based web for women who want to freebirth,” the factsheet states. “They advocator a non-medical attack to childbirth which immoderate group whitethorn find utmost and unpalatable. However, wrong their podcasts location are empowering stories of unassisted births which galore UK freebirthing women person recovered adjuvant erstwhile preparing for their own.”

While nan nexus to nan Aims factsheet was softly removed from nan NHS web page successful August, online diligent accusation leaflets distributed by respective NHS trusts, including Cambridge, Gloucestershire hospitals and East and North Hertfordshire, proceed to nonstop women to nan Aims factsheet recommending FBS.

After it was contacted for remark by nan Guardian connected Monday, Aims removed nan FBS podcast references from its online factsheet. A spokesperson said: “We were not alert of nan superior concerns now associated pinch FBS, and we person now removed nan reference and nexus from our website.”

They said Aims “never recommended aliases referred” women to FBS, saying nan podcast was listed connected its factsheet “as an illustration of worldly immoderate freebirthing women were using, not arsenic proposal aliases endorsement”.

A spokesperson for nan NHS said: “The NHS does not endorse this nine [FBS], aliases its ideology which could harm women.”

Kenga Sivarajah, a lead obstetrician astatine King’s College hospital, successful London, 1 of respective experts who reviewed FBS materials for nan Guardian, said that immoderate of nan accusation it provides women is “dangerous and harmful … truthful for nan NHS to nonstop group towards that is very shocking”.

Amid increasing concerns astir nan modular of attraction successful UK maternity services, a mini but increasing number of British women are believed to beryllium disengaging from master services to take alternatives specified arsenic free birth.

One study recovered a ‘mistrust of organization midwifery’ was influencing women to take a free birth. Photograph: Alamy

A 2024 study by Robert Gordon University, successful Aberdeen, recovered that “a quest for a safer birth” was a cardinal facet influencing women’s decisions to freebirth, arsenic was their “mistrust of organization midwifery”.

In September 2025, nan Nursing and Midwifery Council published a study of women choosing free birth. It recovered that 142 free births were recorded betwixt 1 April 2023 and 31 March 2024 by 47 NHS trusts. This is apt to beryllium a important underestimate because not each trusts cod information connected free births, and galore women do not study their volition to freebirth to healthcare professionals.

While nan sample was excessively mini to tie wider conclusions, 65% of nan women surveyed said their births went smoothly, without immoderate request for aesculapian intervention. Just 3% of nan women surveyed reported trauma aliases intelligence wellness concerns aft their freebirths.

The NMC information besides recovered location was 1 stillbirth and 2 neonatal deaths retired of nan 142 reported free births, though nary accusation was provided astir nan circumstances of those deaths.

Some women choosing free commencement will person antecedently knowledgeable substandard attraction successful NHS hospitals. According to nan Care Quality Commission, which regulates NHS trusts, information levels successful almost 2 thirds of English hospitals’ maternity services are either inadequate (18%) aliases require betterment (47%). In 2024, nan commencement trauma inquiry, led by nan past Conservative MP Theo Clarke, received submissions from much than 1,300 women who had knowledgeable traumatic births successful nan NHS. “Although freebirthing is simply a first prime for a few, for astir it seems to beryllium a ‘least worst’ option,” said Prof Soo Downe, a elder British nurse astatine nan University of Lancashire.

Researchers besides constituent to nan wide closure of location commencement services successful nan UK during nan pandemic arsenic a facet pushing women towards free births. “Post-Covid, services haven’t recovered,” said Dr Claire Feeley, a elder teacher successful midwifery astatine King’s College London, explaining that women were sometimes choosing free commencement arsenic a “back-up plan” because they did not wish to springiness commencement successful hospital. “What my colleagues show maine is that successful areas which are doing really good pinch their location commencement teams, there’s hardly immoderate freebirthing,” she added.

In its statement, nan NHS said that while it was a ineligible correct for women to take an unassisted commencement successful England, “we powerfully urge accessing trained healthcare professionals to guarantee nan information and wellbeing of some mother and babe – and if do you spell down this route, you tin alteration your mind astatine immoderate clip during gestation – including during labour”.

FBS did not respond to requests for remark astir nan Guardian’s investigation. Following publication of nan article connected Saturday, Saldaya posted a connection connected Instagram criticising “propaganda connected mainstream news”. “This is what it intends to beryllium a disruptor,” she said. “They will effort to discredit you. They will dishonesty astir you. They will effort to soundlessness what they don’t understand.”

An FBS disclaimer published successful May said its contented was for “educational and informational” purposes and not intended to diagnose, treat, cure aliases forestall immoderate aesculapian information related to gestation aliases birth. “For aesculapian advice, consult your healthcare provider,” it added.