Released on: 21 November 2025
Responding to the publication of IPPR’s report It Takes A Village: Empowering Families and Communities to Improve Children’s Health, Angela McConville, Chief Executive at NCT said:
“New and expectant parents are uniquely vulnerable during pregnancy, birth and early parenthood - yet the support available at this crucial time is still far too inconsistent. Those experiencing the greatest disadvantage often receive the least support, widening inequalities at the very moment that they need help.
“Antenatal education makes a real difference. When it is evidence-based, high quality and inclusive, it can help pregnant women and people to understand their rights and explore the options available to them. But right now, access depends heavily on where parents live and what they can afford - and that isn’t right.”
The report recommends introducing a ‘Growing Together’ Guarantee: guaranteeing universal antenatal education and postnatal support through the first year of parenthood for every parent. Responding to this, Angela said:
“Every expectant parent should have access to the same inclusive, consistent and high-quality information as part of their NHS maternity care. We support calls for antenatal education to be recognised and delivered as a core, universal offer across every NHS Trust.
“At the same time, maternity services are under enormous pressure. The Royal College of Midwives reports that midwives collectively provide around 100,000 hours of unpaid labour each week simply to keep services running safely. With workloads at this level, it’s clear that the NHS cannot deliver a strengthened antenatal education offer alone.
“This is where charities and community organisations can help with specialist perinatal expertise in group facilitation, community engagement and new parent support, working in partnership with the NHS.
“Alongside a nationally available, free-to-access NHS offer, there is also real value in additional courses which give parents the opportunity to explore topics in greater depth, reflect on their personal circumstances and build meaningful peer networks that support them well beyond birth.”
Notes to editors:
About NCT
We are NCT, the National Childbirth Trust. We’re the charity for pregnancy, parents, and progress.
We’re here for every parent, to help them feel confident, connected and safe.
About NHS Antenatal Education
- Antenatal education is recommended by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) as part of good maternity care. (NICE (2021) Antenatal care [NG201]. https://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/ng201 Paras 1.3.20-1.3.22)
- Some NHS Trusts do offer free antenatal education, but there’s no national standard or requirement for what’s provided.
- This means the quality and availability of NHS classes varies a lot depending on where you live. This affects many expectant parents, and especially those on lower incomes who are more likely to rely on NHS options. (Russell-Webster, T., Davies, A., Toolan, M., Lynch, M., Plachcinski, R., Larkin, M., Fraser, A., Barnfield, S., Smith, M., Burden, C., & Merriel, A. (2024). Cross-sectional survey of antenatal educators’ views about current antenatal education provision. BMC Pregnancy and Childbirth, 24(1), Article 469. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12884-024-06509-9)
About data
- Statistic 100,000 free labour a week comes from: Midwives give 100,000 hours of free labour to the NHS per week to keep England’s maternity services safe says RCM - Royal College of Midwives
