In 2021, a group of maternity and healthcare professionals, health commissioners, researchers and third sector organisations came together to form the Best for Baby Too improvement collaborative. It’s mission is to look at how outcomes can be improved for vulnerable perinatal women and their babies across Liverpool. Representing the interests of women giving birth in the asylum system, Refugee Women Connect’s experts by experience have been working with Liverpool Lighthouse to find creative solutions to improve understanding of the challenges they face.

 

In June this year, the group used their maternity experiences to produce and perform a poem with Liverpool poet Levi Tefari.  The poem highlights some of the difficulties of being pregnant in the UK asylum system - challenges often little understood by caregivers and mainstream services.  Navigating a new health system in a new place with few social connections can be confusing and life in the asylum system on a budget of £5 a day means women often have to make a hard choice between getting a bus to an appointment or eating that day. That poem has now been developed into a film to be used to as a resource to raise awareness of life in the asylum system among professionals involved in maternity and early years care.

 

Clare Mahoney from Liverpool CCG and lead for Best for Baby Too says:

‘The Best for Baby Too collaborative is probably best described as a ‘slice’ of the health system, made up of committed professionals from across many maternity and child health services, all wanting to work together to support vulnerable mums and their babies in Liverpool. The involvement of Refugee Women Connect has been inspirational and the mums have been extraordinarily generous with their stories and ideas. Their performance poem, Kindness Goes a Long Way, is a story of courage and hope and I think everyone involved in this work should watch it. I am delighted that it’s now been filmed.  I can’t wait to see what we work on together next.’

We cant wait either Clare, Let's build a best for baby revolution!

You can help support pregnant asylum seekers and new mums by donating to Refugee Women Connect here. A donation of just £10 is enough to provide nappies for a refugee baby for one week. If you can't afford to donate but would still like to support us, please email [email protected] to hear about our fantastic fundraising and volunteering opportunities.