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Parents who have experienced miscarriages will now be able to apply for a certificate that acknowledges their bereavement.
Baby loss is little discussed despite the fact around 14 babies are estimated to die before, during or soon after birth each day in the UK. Miscarriage is defined as losing a pregnancy before 24 weeks.
Although baby loss certificates were first launched in February of this year, they could only be given to those who had experienced a loss since September 2018.
But new measures, which come into force on Wednesday, mean the service will be expanded to enable all parents who have endured a historic pregnancy loss or a future loss to apply.
More than 50,000 certificates - which are always free to obtain - have been given out since the measures were first introduced.
Health and Social Care Secretary Wes Streeting said: “Losing a pregnancy can be deeply distressing - there is so much love and so many dreams for the future wrapped up in a tiny life.
“That is why it is important for bereaved parents to have the option to officially recognise the existence of their babies and how much they matter. I’m pleased we can now ensure all parents are able to apply for these certificates, no matter how long ago they lost their pregnancies.”
Zoe Clark-Coates MBE, co-chair of the Pregnancy Loss Review, said: “Ten years ago, I had a dream, and that dream was that any baby who had been lost pre-24 weeks would be officially recognised and acknowledged by the government.”
For many, even the earliest of losses can be deeply distressing, both emotionally and physically, but having a formal acknowledgement as a marker of their loss can be a meaningful part of the grieving process.— Vicki Robinson
Ms Clark-Coates, also founder and chief executive of Mariposa International, a baby loss support charity, said she hoped getting a certificate “helps the many families who have longed for their babies to be formally honoured and recognised”.
She said she was looking forward to seeing her own five babies’ names on certificates.
Samantha Collinge, bereavement lead midwife at George Eliot Hospital NHS Trust, said the new measures mark a “huge milestone moment”.
Ms Collinge, co-chair of the Pregnancy Loss Review, added: “Removing the restrictions around the application process will give all bereaved parents of pre-24 week baby loss the official recognition that their babies did exist and that their babies lives, however brief really do matter.”
Vicki Robinson, chief executive of the Miscarriage Association, added: “For many, even the earliest of losses can be deeply distressing, both emotionally and physically, but having a formal acknowledgement as a marker of their loss can be a meaningful part of the grieving process.”
