Parents 1st UK

Who we are

Pregnancy, birth and becoming a parent is a life changing experience. A happy and responsive parent means a baby’s development will flourish. Every parent deserves support and every baby deserves the best possible start in life.

Peer support has a unique and valuable contribution to make to mothers, fathers, babies, families and communities.

The approaches we use are based on clear and strong evidence of what works across the UK and other countries too.

Our culture and values

We are a national charity dedicated to enabling quality peer support to flourish during pregnancy, birth and beyond. The evidence is clear - effective and sustainable peer support nurtures the emotional wellbeing of mothers, fathers, partners, and babies, and builds strengths in communities. We have extensive experience of delivering quality perinatal peer support. We also support commissioning organisations (public and voluntary sector) with thinking about practicalities and planning of perinatal peer support, including design, implementation, and evaluation.

We believe every parent deserves support and every baby deserves the best possible start in life. Quality peer support is vital.

Our mission is clear - We want more parents and babies to benefit from the help peer support can provide. Our vision is a dynamic community where practitioners, volunteers, parents, professionals, and funders connect, share, campaign, network and learn about “what works”.

Building on 20 years of dedicated service we aim to face the future with a renewed commitment to broadening our impact. In response to the growing social challenges and insufficient government support, we aim to provide a support system that addresses the diverse needs of the communities we serve by fostering resilience, well-being, and empowerment.

Equality, diversity and inclusion policy

Parents 1st embraces Equity, Diversity and inclusion and encourages applications from all backgrounds and every community group.