As Maternal Mental Health Awareness Week takes place (5–11 May 2025), NHS staff, charities and people with lived experience are reflecting on the inaugural Maternal Mental Health Service Summit, held on 30 April, where West London NHS Trust joined other services in taking part.
The one-day summit, timed just ahead of the awareness week, was organised by maternity mental health professionals from several NHS Trusts including West London NHS Trust and Central and North West London. The event brought together a wide range of voices to examine the complex realities of perinatal mental health care – from maternal loss and trauma to inequality and human rights.
With the theme Every Parent, Every Path: A Holistic Approach, the programme featured panel discussions, interactive workshops, art and poster exhibitions and sessions dedicated to self-care and cross-sector collaboration.
Hadiss Khossravi, principal cognitive behavioural therapist and clinical lead at West London NHS Trust, said: “It was completely sold out. This conference is bringing together learnings from maternity mental health services, we have different professionals like midwives, psychologists and psychological practitioners, and individuals with lived experience. We see this conference as a start, the beginning.”
Among those sharing their personal journeys was artist and researcher Catherine Miller, who explored how art helped her navigate her own experiences of maternal loss and trauma. She said: “I had my first maternal loss was 2012, my second in 2014, and then nine years ago I had my daughter but that featured a lot of birth trauma that was never really processed for me.
“Working with midwives in West Yorkshire to help me realise how I can navigate that myself through my own artwork. By making art I released all the hidden emotions and things that were still festering inside me.”
The day also featured a surprise visit from fitness icon Mr Motivator. He said: “Exercise is medicine and not enough people are taking the medicine of movement. The most difficult thing I ever had to deal with was losing my granddaughter at age 12. In life you’re going to get those ups and downs but it’s only a bad moment, it’s not a bad life.”
, NHS staff, charities and people with lived experience are reflecting on the inaugural Maternal Mental Health Service Summit, held on 30 April, where West London NHS Trust joined other services in taking part.){kind=link}