Dear John,
This weekend, 45 protesters assembled outside bpas Finsbury Park and stood outside for several hours, intimidating the women using our service. The protesters had large banners and monks' robes, and were seen following women, shouting at them that they "love them", stopping them as they left the clinic, repeatedly approaching them as they tried to walk away, and pushing leaflets through car windows.
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This has got to stop. Sajid Javid MP's decision in 2018 not to introduce buffer zones at a national level means there is little the police can do. Please email your MP now to seek their support:
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If you've been affected by a protest like this outside an abortion clinic and you'd feel comfortable speaking to a friendly journalist about your experience, please email [email protected] to help us in our advocacy work.
Thank you,
The bpas team
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Foodbank baby formula ban
Following reports that NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde has ceased health visitor referrals to a local foodbank on the basis that it provides infant formula, we are supporting Feed UK’s #formulaisfood campaign. There is no contradiction between supporting women to breastfeed and ensuring mothers can access infant milk when they need it. Click here to sign Feed’s letter.
Pain relief in childbirth
An investigation by the Telegraph has found that women are being denied epidurals by the NHS amid a ‘cult of natural childbirth’, with one woman being told “it’s not called labour for nothing, it’s meant to be hard work”. We need better understanding of why women’s requests are refused or delayed in contravention of NICE guidance. We’ve joined Birthrights and PregnantThenScrewed to call for all women to have access to the pain relief they need in childbirth.
Who should you listen to for advice on drinking during pregnancy?
Following another slew of alarming stories in the press last week about drinking in pregnancy, we were really proud to see Grazia feature our work unpicking the science behind the headlines.
The WRISK project, which we run with Cardiff researcher Heather Trickey, looks at the risk messages women receive in pregnancy and their experiences navigating them. Our research has shown that women don't mind the "better safe than sorry" approach, but they want evidence-based information – not scaremongering.
Event: Join us at the University of Kent on 18 March for a free seminar on Pregnancy in the Press – tickets here!
Calls to support best abortion care in Northern Ireland
UK medical bodies have called on the government to ensure a woman-centred framework in Northern Ireland. The Royal College of Midwives, the Royal College Obstetricians and Gynaecologists and the Faculty of Sexual and Reproductive Healthcare wrote to the government, urging them to implement a framework rooted in the best clinical practice. We fully support their calls for a framework that would support Northern Irish doctors and midwives to do what's best for their patients. Read their letter here.
Champion of choice
We were delighted to see Stella Creasy’s parliamentary researcher, Cara Sanquest, win the Prospect UK Parliamentary Researcher of the Year award. Cara is also one of the driving forces behind the London Irish Abortion Rights Campaign and a long-term campaigner for abortion rights in both Ireland and Northern Ireland.
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