Photo call: Wednesday 7 October 2026 at 1pm
Bereaved families and leading baby loss charities unite at Holyrood to call for stronger political support
On Wednesday 7 October 2026, seven national organisations will come together outside the Scottish Parliament for a peaceful awareness gathering marking Baby Loss Awareness Week. The event coincides with the parliamentary debate on baby loss that afternoon (S7M-00815), offering a poignant moment for families, charities and MSPs to stand together.
The gathering is organised by the Scottish Baby Loss Collaborative, comprising Held In Our Hearts, Simba, Miscarriage UK, ARC Scotland, Sands, Baby Loss Retreat, and The Lullaby Trust. The event is sponsored by Paul McLennan MSP, who has supported the Collaborative’s work and its call for improved support for bereaved families.
Who the Scottish Baby Loss Collaborative are
The Scottish Baby Loss Collaborative is a partnership of seven specialist organisations working across Scotland to support families affected by miscarriage, stillbirth, neonatal death, and infant loss. Together, they provide counselling, peer support, memory-making services, advocacy, and specialist clinical guidance for families and professionals.
The Collaborative works to ensure that bereaved parents receive compassionate, consistent care wherever they live, and that their voices shape national policy. The group is calling on MSPs to commit to substantially increasing support for baby loss services, including psychological care, bereavement pathways, and specialist programmes that help families navigate the trauma of losing a child.
Event details
- Date: Wednesday 7 October 2026
- Time: 12:00 noon – 2:00 pm
- Photo call: 1:00 pm (all press invited)
- Location: Outside the Scottish Parliament, in the area facing the loch
- Nature of event: Peaceful gathering, no amplification or structures
Every day in Scotland, around 70 pregnancies and babies are lost. Families attending the event will shine a light on their experiences and call for meaningful action to ensure no one faces baby loss alone.
Held In Our Hearts – highlighting the Hospital to Home programme
Held In Our Hearts will feature prominently at the gathering, including families with lived experience supported through its Hospital to Home programme. This programme provides specialist psychological and practical support to bereaved parents as they transition from hospital care back into their homes and communities.
Hospital-to-Home service is unique and was developed and launched in 2023 to help bridge the gap in care from the clinical setting to the home after the loss of a pregnancy, baby, or infant. Presently, there is no statutory support available in the community following hospital discharge. The programme currently operates across six health boards and is seeking additional support from the Scottish Government for a national rollout. The service focuses on bridging the gap between clinical and community care to offer families early bereavement support within their home following their loss.
With proposed reforms to Scotland’s NHS boards on the horizon, the Collaborative is urging MSPs to ensure that services such as Held In Our Heart’s Hospital to Home are protected, expanded, and properly funded.
Nicola Welsh, Chief Executive of Held In Our Hearts and a leading voice in baby loss support in Scotland, said:
“Scotland suffers 70 pregnancy and baby losses a day. Scotland needs radical reform in support. The loss of your own baby is a devastating life event that requires specialist bereavement support.
“There is a gap in service between a clinical transition to care in the community for individuals facing baby loss. Scotland’s public spending on adult mental health services already exceeds £1.2 billion annually. Current provision for pregnancy and baby loss remains unequal, and there is currently no minimum framework to support families across Scotland.
“Our research has found that the impact of baby loss includes hidden costs, from treating anxiety to debt, relationship breakdowns, job loss, self-harm, and even suicide. These are not issues publicly discussed or associated with baby loss, yet they are the backbone of a hidden problem for Scottish families.”
Media invitation
Journalists, photographers, and camera crews are warmly invited to attend the 1pm photo call. Representatives from each organisation will be available for comment, and families participating will have given prior consent for media engagement.
For further information or interview requests, please contact: Alastair Stewart – Orbit Communications, alastair.stewart@orbit.scot / 07384466323.