The Motherhood Group

How do you know when maternity care wasn’t safe? [swipe]

If your concerns were dismissed, your questions weren’t answered, or something went wrong without a clear explanation - that matters.

Black mothers are more likely to experience harm in maternity care. Speaking up is not being difficult. It’s about safety.

You deserve answers. You deserve support 🩷

True Partnership In Black Maternal Health
It means investing in research, strengthening accountability when care fails, resourcing community-led organisations, improving workforce practice, and committing long-term to safer maternity systems.

We are proud to work alongside organisations who understand that improving Black maternal health requires action, transparency and sustained collaboration.

















NHS North Thames genomics medicine service
NHS South east genomics medicine service
20 March | London

Building safer systems. Together.

Baroness Amos has released interim findings from her independent review into maternity services in England.

She says maternity and neonatal services are failing too many women, babies and families. Care is described as inconsistent, with good and poor practice existing side by side.

Here is what the interim findings say so far:

Services are overstretched, with staffing shortages affecting safety.

Poor workplace culture, including racist and bullying behaviour, is not always addressed by leadership.

Structural inequalities mean Black and Asian women face higher risks of adverse outcomes, alongside discrimination reported by other marginalised groups.

Families experience a lack of compassion and transparency when baby loss or harm occurs.

Some maternity units are operating in outdated environments that compromise dignity and care.

Final recommendations are expected in April.

Swipe ➡️to understand more. Share this so more people know what is happening inside maternity services.

Less than a month to go until our Black Maternal Health Conference UK 2026 - the largest conference of its kind in the UK.

Ten years of impact. One room. The conversations that matter.

Are you coming? Our full speaker agenda is now live!

This is not just another conference. It is a powerful, intentional gathering of lived experience voices, NHS leaders, system-wide decision makers, policy advocates, researchers, fathers, parents and families who have navigated the system, challenged it, and helped reshape it.

From community voices to national influence, we are bridging the gap between mothers and maternity systems 🩷

20.03.26 | London
Register now.

Surprise! More incredible voices joining The Motherhood Group’s Black Maternal Health Conference - the UK’s largest gathering dedicated to the experiences & solutions of maternal health inequalities🩷✨📢

✨ Patricia Bright – Global Influencer & Mother. Speaking about visibility, influence and the vulnerabilities that come with navigating motherhood.

✨ Genevieve Osaka - Lawyer, lived experience mother & content creator. Sharing her personal journey of navigating maternity systems.

✨ Tracey MacCormack – Assistant Director for Midwifery Professional Practice Directorate, Nursing & Midwifery Council. Bringing the regulatory lens on safety, standards and how professional accountability must work for Black families.

✨ Khedidja Teape – Sepsis survivor, quad amputee & maternal health advocate. A vital voice on preventable harm.

✨ Estefania Fafabeb – Lived experience speaker, maternal health & disability inclusion. Exploring the realities of raising a child with special needs and the intersectionality, mental health, stigma and shame.

📍 London | 📅 20 March 2026

With deepest thanks to our headline partners , and

And appreciation to our conference partners NHS North Thames Genomic Medicine Service, NHS South East Genomic Medicine Service, Tommy’s, Maternal Mental Health Alliance, NCT, Sands, NSPCC, Bliss, Sport England, Maternity Engagement Action, PANDAS Foundation and Neurodivergent Birth.

This is where lived experience leads and systems are expected to listen.

After a healthcare appointment, many Black mothers are left feeling unsettled - not because they weren’t seen, but because something didn’t feel right.

These are five experiences Black mothers often report after care when concerns have been minimised, questioned, or dismissed. They don’t always show up in notes or outcomes, but they shape trust, safety, and whether mothers feel able to speak up next time.

At The Motherhood Group & PANDAS, we hear these experiences. Naming them matters - because when we understand what mothers are carrying after appointments, we can begin to change how care is delivered during them.

This work sits at the intersection of maternal mental health, equity, and accountability, which is why are proud to share this in partnership with .

As we mark 10 years of The Motherhood Group at Black Maternal Health Conference UK, we’re proud to introduce another group of women -
🎤 Host & Founder - Sandra Igwe MBE - Black maternal health leader, femtech founder and CEO of The Motherhood Group, bringing a decade of community-led advocacy, policy influence and action to the stage.

🎤 Speakers
Natalee Barnett - Founder of The Girl Spot, women’s fitness and community builder, championing holistic wellbeing, movement and sisterhood.

Miss Nikky Amour - Sharing powerful lived experience of single parenting and divorce, bringing honesty, nuance and reality to conversations often left unseen.

Naomi Fennessy - Mother of triplets and lived-experience speaker, sharing her journey through high-risk pregnancy and complex maternity care

Daniella Noon .with.daniella - Accredited CBT therapist and EMDR practitioner, specialising in Black maternal mental health and trauma-informed care at The Motherhood Group.

This conference is about bridging the gap - between communities, maternity services, healthcare systems and the people they’re meant to serve.

📍 Friday 20 March 2026
🕘 9:00am – 5:00pm
📍 Basinghall Avenue, London EC2V 5DD

Delivered with the support of our headline partners:
| | |

Ten years of making Black mothers visible.
Ten years of community-led change. 💗

What does allyship really mean in Black maternal health?
[swipe]
For the first time ever, The Motherhood Group’s Black Maternal Health Conference UK will host a dedicated panel on allyship, in practice.

This panel brings together some of the most senior leaders in maternity, policy, research and mental health, to move beyond statements and into action and systems change.

Panellists include:

• Kate Brintworth — Chief Midwifery Officer for NHS England
• Dr Alison Wright — RCOG President | Consultant Obstetrician & Gynaecologist
• Professor Marian Knight MBE FMedSci — Director, National Perinatal Epidemiology Unit & Professor of Maternal and Child Population Health, University of Oxford | Lead Investigator, MBRRACE-UK
• Jacqui Kempen — Head of Maternity, South East London Local Maternity & Neonatal System (LMNS) | Associate Director, Maternity & Neonatal Services, NHS South East London Integrated Care Board
• Laura Bridle — Senior Midwife, Maternal Mental Health Services, South East London Integrated Care System | King’s College Hospital NHS Foundation Trust (HELIX / NHS London)

📍 Black Maternal Health Conference UK 2026
📅 20 March 2026 | London
🎟️ Scan to book

With thanks to our conference partners:
Leigh Day | Slater and Gordon Lawyers | NHS North Thames Genomic Medicine Service | NHS South East Genomic Medicine Service | NIHR BioResource | Tommy’s | Maternal Mental Health Alliance | NCT Charity | Sands | NSPCC | Bliss | Sport England | Maternity Engagement Action CIC | PANDAS Foundation | Neurodivergent Birth CIC

HealthEquity TheMotherhoodGroup

Our next group of speakers joining us for The Motherhood Group’s Black Maternal Health Conference UK 📢🩷

Natalee Barnett – Women’s fitness and community builder; Founder, The Girl Spot
Dr Annabel Sowemimo – Community Sexual & Reproductive Health Consultant and Reproductive Health Lead, Lewisham and Greenwich NHS Trust
Stacey Edison-Odiase – Lived experience speaker (baby loss) and faith-led Founder, Whilst Mama Waits
Serlina Boyd – Motherhood after divorce advocate; Founder and Publishing Director, Cocoa Publishing (Cocoa Girl & Cocoa Boy)
Dr (h.c.) Janet Fyle MBE, Hon FRCOG – Professional Policy Advisor, Royal College of Midwives; Registered Nurse and Midwife; Health equality advocate

Together, these women bring lived experience, clinical leadership, policy expertise, community power and creative advocacy - Let’s go!

📍 Friday 20 March 2026
🕘 9:00am – 5:00pm
📌 1 Basinghall Avenue, London EC2V 5DD

🎟 Registration is still open.

10 years of making Black mothers visible.
10 years of community-led change.