We Did It! But #NowForNI

Today the Government have reinstated permission for telemedical abortion services. This means that soon women will be able to access safe and effective abortion care while also following the advice relating to Covid-19.

We want to thank all of our supporters and staff. This would not have happened if it were not for you too. Thank you for all of your letters sent to MPs, as well as the huge amounts of social media support we have had the past week.

Despite this, we are extremely concerned about the availability of care for women living in other parts of the UK. Although abortion is now lawful in Northern Ireland, services have not been established yet and telemedical abortion care is not permitted under the regulations. As a result of this, women are being forced to travel to England at a time when they are also being told to stay at home.

We will continue campaigning to ensure women across the UK can access the abortion services they need during this critical time.

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Our work

Under a law from 1861 any woman, anywhere in the UK, can go to prison for ending a pregnancy without the permission of two doctors. MPs support change, but we need the opportunity to make it happen. We are considering several legislative routes, including one based on the forthcoming Domestic Abuse Bill.

Preventing clinic protests

Anti-abortion activism targeted at clinics is on the rise in the UK. We are working to introduce buffer zones around abortion clinics to protect women and staff from intimidation and harassment. So far two buffer zones have been introduced, and more are in the pipeline. 

The two-child benefits cap pushes families into poverty and impacts women's reproductive decisions. We are working with other UK charities to fight it. Read our briefing here.

Our campaign for accessible emergency contraception has seen prices slashed across major pharmacy chains. We're now working to make it available straight from the pharmacy shelf, without a mandatory consultation – as already happens in the USA, Canada, and many European countries.

We're working with pharmacists nationwide to improve access to several methods of contraception, including the injection and the pill. 

Our contraceptive counselling & well woman advice service in Europe's largest women’s prison, HMP Bronzefield, was an RCNi Nurse Awards finalist. We provide confidential, non-judgemental counselling & education to aid women's wellbeing & rehabilitation. 

We’ve been working with pro-choice campaigners and the governments of the Isle of Man and Gibraltar to change their laws outlawing abortion and help them provide care for their citizens. 

Women who are pregnant or planning a pregnancy are bombarded with public health messages, for example about what to eat, drink, how much they should weigh, and what medications they should or shouldn’t take. The WRISK project aims to understand and improve the communication of risk in pregnancy, to make things better for women.