Parents who lose a baby before the 24th week of pregnancy can now get a ‘baby loss certificate’ to have their grief acknowledged

Parents who lose a child before the 24th week of pregnancy can apply for a certificate today for the first time to have their grief formally recognized for the first time.

The scheme will be on a voluntary basis and ministers say it remains the choice of all parents to deal with their bereavement ‘how they see fit’.

Babies born before 24 weeks do not need to be officially registered, leaving some mothers and fathers feeling ignored.

The new certificates can be requested free of charge online from 9 a.m. and are available to parents who have suffered a loss during early pregnancy since September 2018.

They will be official, but not legal, documents.

Ministers are considering plans to expand the eligibility criteria and give survivors legal leave from work.

The certificate idea emerged as part of the government’s response to the independent Pregnancy Loss Review.

The government says it wants to ‘ensure that relatives feel supported through their grief, acknowledge their loss, acknowledge their pain and ensure they feel heard’.

During a visit to a maternity ward funeral home, Women’s Health Strategy Minister Maria Caulfield said parents who lose a baby before 24 weeks may feel there is a ‘lack of recognition of that baby’.

Speaking at St George’s Hospital in Tooting, South West London, she said: ‘Receiving an official certificate means a lot.

‘Parents find it so important to see their baby’s name on a certificate so they can share it with family and friends and remember that baby.

‘We had parents user test the system and that’s why it took a little longer to get it up and running than we would have liked.

“It’s a very difficult time for parents, even if they don’t do it right away… so we want to make it as easy as possible.”

The Minister was given a tour of the department’s specialist bereavement suite, which provides a comforting and private environment for families dealing with the emotional and physical challenges of perinatal loss.

The suite at St George’s was renovated in October after the family of a baby who died after birth raised more than £80,000 towards its renovation.

Not all hospitals have such facilities and Ms Caulfield was told by midwives during the visit that these should be ‘standard’ in maternity wards.

The minister said: ‘Having a facility like this where mothers are not in a maternity ward, where they have the time and space to spend with their babies before having to leave hospital, is vitally important.’

Asked about calls to introduce statutory leave for grieving parents who have lost a baby before 24 weeks, she said: “We are looking at that.”

Health Minister Victoria Atkins said: ‘Losing a baby can be a hugely traumatic event and the introduction of certificates to formally recognize the loss of life is a positive step towards better support for women and affected parents.’

Commenting on the announcement of the plan, Kath Abrahams, chief executive of pregnancy research and infant loss charity Tommy’s, said: ‘This announcement will be warmly welcomed by many in our community.

‘The pain of losing a baby before 24 weeks is often made worse for grieving parents because there is no formal recognition of their experience.

“We are pleased that infant loss certificates will now be available to provide some level of comfort to at least some of these families.”

But Ms Abrahams said miscarriages remain a “largely hidden problem” due to a lack of commitment from the government to collect statistics on the issue.

“However, we believe more needs to be done to formally record losses before 24 weeks,” she continued.

‘We cannot tackle the wider problem of baby loss without a commitment from the Government to collect and record miscarriage statistics for the whole of the UK.

‘Without data, miscarriage remains a largely hidden problem and is not prioritized, despite the tens of thousands of families affected every year.’

The new scheme is only launching in England today, although people in Scotland can already apply to have their loss recorded before 24 weeks in the Memorial Book of Pregnancy and Baby Loss, and receive a certificate of inclusion in the book.

Ruth Bender Atik, national director of the Miscarriage Association, said: ‘For many, if not most, people, even the first loss can be very painful, both emotionally and physically.

“It means not only the loss of this pregnancy, but also the hopes, plans and dreams they had for this new life.

‘And the lack of formal acknowledgment or sign of their loss can exacerbate their grief.

‘The new certification program will make a real positive difference for many who have experienced pregnancy or infant loss, and will provide formal recognition of the tiniest of lives.’