On Sunday afternoon, parents, lay-people, doulas, midwives and health care professionals gathered on Appley Beach in Ryde to stand in solidarity with midwives as part of the #MarchwithMidwives campaign.
Heather Wilkins, doula and hypnobirthing practitioner at The Birth Space, and organiser of the Isle of Wight vigil, told News OnTheWight,
“Despite the freezing weather conditions and onshore breeze, we were delighted that between 50 and 60 people came along to support our vigil.
“We welcomed Island Midwives, retired Midwives, parents and their babies, interested members of the public and Isle of Wight birth workers.
“We had the opportunity to speak with Leader of the Council, Lora Peacey-Wilcox, Cllr Michael Lilley, Mayor of Ryde and Cllr Jenna Sabine, Deputy Mayor or Ryde; they all made a special trip out in support of the event.”
Click on images to see larger versions
Heather went on to say,
“We received some very enthusiastic feedback and an invitation to ongoing talks with the Council about how Maternity Services can be supported on the Isle of Wight.
“A big thank you to everyone for coming along and showing your support for our amazing Midwives.”
The petition
Following yesterday’s vigils the petition received a huge spike and climbed above 100k by midnight last night.
If you wish to sign the petition you can do so on the Change.org Website.
Woman’s Hour feature
Kay King from the March With Midwives Steering Committee will be on today’s (Monday) BBC Radio 4 Woman’s Hour speaking about the 72 events that took place across the UK.
You’ll be able to listen again on the BBC Sounds Website if you missed it (it’s near the end of the programme).
