THE CHALLENGE
TEWV's Specialist Perinatal Mental Health Teams recognised the importance of supporting attachment, bonding and parent-infant relationships as part of wider perinatal mental health care.
While practitioners had access to a range of therapeutic interventions, there was a desire to strengthen the availability of practical, accessible tools that could help parents actively build relationships with their babies during pregnancy and beyond.
The Trust sought approaches that could:
- Support attachment and bonding during pregnancy
- Enhance parent-infant relationship work
- Strengthen perinatal mental health support
- Provide practical interventions alongside therapeutic services
- Improve workforce confidence
- Create continuity across the full 1001 days
SHAPING THE FUTURE OF PREGNANCY BONDING
A unique aspect of this partnership was TEWV's role in helping develop and refine the Pregnancy Bonding Programme.
Working alongside Specialist Perinatal Midwives, Clinical Psychologists, Psychological Therapists, Mental Health Nurses, Health Visitors, Occupational Therapists and Nursery Nurses, Hands on Babies was able to explore how attachment-focused interventions could be embedded within specialist services.
Together, the teams helped develop practical tools including:
- Pregnancy Bonding activities
- Parent engagement resources
- Pregnancy Bonding Journals
- Relationship-building exercises
- Brief attachment interventions
- Practical techniques that could be integrated into routine support
This collaborative approach helped create a suite of interventions that could be delivered within real-world perinatal mental health settings.
What participants said
Parent Particpant
Helen, Perinatal Mental Health Nurse
Helen, Perinatal Mental Health Nurse
"The Pregnancy Bonding Journal was fantastic. It gave me an opportunity to share my worries and concerns in a way that helped me understand myself better."
Helen, Perinatal Mental Health Nurse
Helen, Perinatal Mental Health Nurse
Helen, Perinatal Mental Health Nurse
"I have found the Pregnancy Bonding resources to be incredibly useful. To finally have some practical tools, techniques and resources that we can share with parents to help with this often overlooked attachment moment is so beneficial."
Service Commissioner
Helen, Perinatal Mental Health Nurse
Service Commissioner
"The unique tools and techniques that have been developed through the Pregnancy Bonding Programme have enabled my team to offer valuable practical and accessible support to our parents which I have no doubt will improve outcomes."