NHS directed pregnant women to controversial Free Birth Society via charity | NHS

The NHS directs pregnant women to a website linking pregnant women to the Free Birth Foundation, an organization linked to infant deaths worldwide after encouraging birth without medical assistance.

A number of NHS trusts are directing women considering a “free birth” to a charity website, which until Monday cited FBS podcasts as a source of “empowering stories” that could help British women “prepare for their own birth”.

It included a link to the FBS podcast, which medical experts warned was being used to radicalize women with misinformation.

FBS advocates an extreme version of free birth, also known as unassisted birth. He advises mothers not to consult doctors and midwives and advises them to avoid pregnancy screenings.

The multimillion-dollar business, run by former doulas Emilee Saldaya and Yolande Norris Clark, has a successful podcast, Instagram following, festival, and online schools for birth attendants.

The prevalence of free birth in the UK is low but is believed to be increasing, partly due to distrust of maternity services and fear of an over-medicalised approach to birth.

But experts warned that many FBS claims contradict evidence-based medical advice. Saldaya and Norris-Clark described medical attempts to resuscitate the newborn as a form of “sabotage” and claimed that doctors and midwives frequently sexually assault women in hospitals.

An investigation by the Guardian on Saturday identified 48 cases of late-term stillbirth or neonatal death or other serious harm involving mothers or birth attendants apparently linked to FBS. In 18 of these cases, there is evidence that FBS played a significant role in the mother’s or birth attendant’s decision-making, leading to potentially preventable tragedies.

Now the Guardian can reveal how the NHS is directing women to FBS content recommended by the Association for Improvements in Maternity Services (Aims), a charity campaigning on maternity care in the UK.

Until this summer the NHS web page “Where to give birth: options” directed women considering unassisted birth to an information sheet from Aims. When women clicked on the link, the fact sheet recommended the FBS podcast.

“Freebirth Society is a US-based network for women who want to give birth freely.” information note states. “They advocate a non-medical approach to birth, which some people may find extreme and unpleasant. However, their podcasts feature empowering stories of unassisted births, which many freebirthing women in the UK have found helpful as they prepare for their own births.”

While the link to the Aims factsheet was quietly removed from the NHS website in August, online patient information leaflets distributed by various NHS trusts were also included. Cambridge, Gloucestershire hospitals And East and North HertfordshireContinue to direct women to the Purposes fact sheet recommending FBS.

Aims removed the FBS podcast references from his online information page after the Guardian contacted him for comment on Monday. A spokesman said: “We were not aware of any serious concerns regarding FBS at this time and have now removed the reference and link from our website.”

Aims “never recommended or referred” women to FBS, officials said, adding that the podcast was listed in FBS’s fact sheet “not as a recommendation or endorsement, but as an example of the material used by some free birthing women.”

A spokesman for the NHS said: “The NHS does not support this society [FBS]or its ideology that could harm women.”

Kenga Sivarajah, chief obstetrician at King’s College hospital in London and one of several experts who reviewed FBS material for the Guardian, said some of the information it provided women was “dangerous and harmful, so it was very shocking that the NHS would direct people to it”.

As concerns grow about the standard of care in maternity services in the UK, a small but growing number of British women are believed to be foregoing professional services in favor of alternatives such as free maternity.

A. 2024 survey Research by Robert Gordon University in Aberdeen found that the “quest for a safer birth” was a key factor influencing women’s free birth decisions, as was “distrust of institutional midwifery”.

In September 2025, the Nursing and Midwifery Council published a survey of women choosing free birth. It was found that 142 unpaid births were recorded by 47 NHS trusts between 1 April 2023 and 31 March 2024. This is likely to be a significant underestimate because not all trusts collect data on unpaid births and many women do not inform their healthcare providers of their intention to have unpaid births.

Although the sample was too small to draw broader conclusions, 65% of women surveyed said their births went smoothly without any need for medical intervention. Only 3% of women surveyed reported experiencing trauma or mental health issues following their free birth.

NMC data also revealed that there was one stillbirth and two neonatal deaths out of 142 reported free births, but no information was provided about the circumstances of these deaths.

Some women who choose free birth will have previously experienced substandard care in NHS hospitals. Safety levels in almost two-thirds of British hospital maternity services are at or below zero, according to the Care Quality Commission, which regulates NHS trusts. inadequate (18%) or needs improvement (47%). In 2024, the birth trauma inquiry, led by then Conservative MP Theo Clarke. submissions received From more than 1,300 women who experienced traumatic birth on the NHS. “While free birth may be the first choice for a few, it seems to be the ‘least worst’ option for most,” said Prof Soo Downe, a senior British midwife at the University of Lancashire.

The researchers also point out that the mass closure of home birth services in the UK during the pandemic was a factor pushing women to give birth for free. Dr D., senior lecturer in midwifery at King’s College London. “Services have not improved post-Covid,” Claire Feeley said, explaining that women sometimes choose free birth as a “backup plan” because they do not want to give birth in hospital. “My colleagues tell me that in areas where home birth teams are doing really well, free birth is almost non-existent,” she added.

In a statement, the NHS said it was a legal right for women in England to choose unassisted birth, but “we strongly recommend that you consult trained healthcare professionals to ensure the safety and well-being of both mother and baby – and if you do go down this path, you can change your mind at any time during the pregnancy, including birth.”

FBS did not respond to requests for comment on the Guardian’s investigation. After the article was published on Saturday, Saldaya He released a statement on Instagram He criticizes “propaganda in mainstream news.” “This is what it means to be disruptive,” he said. “They will try to discredit you, they will lie about you, they will try to silence what they do not understand.”

An FBS disclaimer published in May said the content was for “educational and informational” purposes and was not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any medical condition related to pregnancy or childbirth. “Consult your healthcare provider for medical advice,” he added.