The Birth Free Collective
I am part of the Birth Free Collective, which is a small group of local doulas who share the core belief that women and birthing people should be free to birth as they choose. We are friends, mothers, and advocates, and we are passionate about building community as that is where the magic is - we are a web of women who hold each other up so that we can hold you when you need us alongside you.
Members of the collective
Collective FAQs
How does the collective work?
As a collective we support each other to support families. In the highly unlikely event of an emergency preventing one of us from attending your birth (not happened yet!), we would be able to call on another doula within the collective to attend on our behalf if they are able to. This is different from ‘back-up’, which is a formal arrangement where another doula is dedicated to being on call for a set period of time. If ‘back-up’ is required, perhaps due to a pre planned engagement at the time of booking, then this will be arranged with a member of the collective where possible.
During pregnancy you are able to meet any or all of the collective so that you are familiar with other local doulas, can benefit from their knowledge also, and so you feel confident that someone you know will always be able to attend your birth.
Who is my contract with?
Every member of the collective is independent and self-employed. Unless choosing shared care, the doula you book is the person you have a contract with and the collective is a bonus!
What is shared care?
Shared care is when you book multiple doulas who work together to provide you with the support that best meets your needs. This may be that antenatal and postnatal visits are split between doulas and one attends your birth, or that you primarily work with one doula, but have two at your birth - or any combination of visits and support that meets your needs. In this instance the contract is with multiple doulas and the offering is bespoke.
Do you share my details?
We share information about our clients with each other without using identifying information, unless you have agreed for this to be shared. This means we can offer each other supervision and mentoring, much the same as therapists and counsellors do. The better our support network, the better able we are to hold space for you.