Black Mothers Matter is proud to announce that we have published our first ever Impact Report documenting five years of Black Mothers Matter.
The report is an opportunity to celebrate how far we have come, reflect on what we have built together, and recognise the people, partnerships and support that have helped shape our journey.
When we started, we could not have imagined the impact our work would have or how much we would grow along the way.
We wanted to take the opportunity to reflect, capture and celebrate all that we achieved, in our own words. Here are some of the highlights.
Growing our community
Since the launch of our first group in September 2022 we have seen remarkable growth in our community offer - with the addition of three other community groups - serving mothers and babies racialised as Black and Mixed-Black.
Our groups are about more than bringing people together. They offer spaces where Black mothers and birthing people can feel safer, share their experiences, find connection and access support in an environment where they feel understood.
Feedback from our community reflects the difference these spaces can make:
92% felt more supported.
93% felt safe to share their stories.
94% accessed additional support, information and activities.
95% felt better by connecting to other parents.
Alongside our community groups, we have continued to expand our resources, including our Pregnancy Handbook, while growing our social media community and reaching more people with information and support relevant to their experiences.
Supporting change beyond our community groups
We have also seen significant growth in our professional work. We are committed to helping NHS staff and other professionals better understand the experiences of Black mothers and birthing people, and to improving the care they need.
In 2024, we received 27 bookings to speak at events, creating opportunities to shape our work and bring conversations about Black maternity experiences to wider audiences. One of our talks attracted an audience of 365 people, while Sonah’s Ted Talk has amassed 3.2k views and counting.
Through the Black Maternity Matters programme, we have trained 212 NHS perinatal staff and 42 NHS senior leaders.
Through these milestones we have raised more awareness, shared knowledge and better equipped professionals within the perinatal system to support all types of Black people giving birth.
A village of support
Our achievements have been made possible by the generosity of friends and funders who believed in our vision.
Our first grants came from Quartet Community Foundation and Bristol Redistro in 2021. Since then, we have received support from 15 different funders over five years, with our largest grant to date coming from the National Lottery Community Fund supporting five years of work.
What comes next?
We are proud of how far we have come, we know there is still work to do.
Looking ahead, we are excited to commission an evaluation report, lay the foundations for publishing our own research, and find our ‘forever’ home. These next steps will help us strengthen our offer and continue working towards a future where Black mothers and birthing people receive the support, care and respect they deserve.
As we enter this chapter, we remain committed to doing this work through a lens of joy, creativity and celebration.
Want to learn more about our journey?
If you want to read the full report, you can request one here.
