Giving birth at home can be a very fulfilling experience for you and your family, please discuss any questions you may have with your midwife when booking your homebirth. This webpage has been designed to answer some questions you may have when deciding on home as your place of birth.

What are the benefits associated with a home birth?

Those who give birth at home feel more in control of their labour, feel their labour was a positive and empowering experience, begin parenthood with increased self-esteem and have an overwhelming preference for planning homebirth again the future. 

Research over the last two decades has found that planned homebirth is at least as safe as hospital birth for healthy people with normal pregnancies and is associated with good outcomes for both parents and babies. 

People who give birth at home are much less likely to have birthing interventions. Babies born at home are less likely to have birth injuries and are less likely to need resuscitation.

Find out more information on the birthplace study.

Who will attend my birth?

Two midwives from the community team will attend your home birth. If your named community midwife is available, they will attend.

How do I contact the midwife?

Please call: 01623 676170/01623 655722

When you think you are in labour, contact the Sherwood Birthing Unit on the above number and inform the midwife that you are booked for a home birth.

When shall I call for the midwives?

You are welcome to contact the Birthing Unit at any time if you have any concerns. If your waters break, with or without contractions, please phone the Birthing Unit. It is important to let us know immediately if the waters appear green or brown. Once labour is established, your midwives will stay with you at home.

How will the midwife monitor my baby’s wellbeing during labour?

The midwives will offer to listen to your baby’s heart rate at regular intervals. If there are any concerns, these would be discussed with you and you will be offered a transfer to the hospital.

This journey is always made by ambulance and a midwife will always accompany you. Your partner may be asked to follow in their own vehicle. If you decline transfer to hospital, the midwives will continue to care for you at home, with guidance from the maternity team via telephone.

What happens after the birth?

Your midwives will stay with you for at least one hour after the birth. If you wish to breast/chestfeed, they will offer support if needed. However you choose to feed your baby, the midwives will encourage ‘The Golden Hour’ where possible. This is uninterrupted skin-to-skin with your baby for the first hour following birth. Before the midwives leave, they will ensure you have correct telephone numbers to call if you have any concerns at any time.

Your midwives will discuss your postnatal care and make a plan with you. They will advise when to expect your next visit.  You will be offered a hearing screen for your baby and baby’s routine newborn check (known as a NIPE) which will be arranged by the midwives. 

What are the risks associated with a home birth?

Giving birth at home has many benefits and is considered safe. Research has shown that for those who have birthed a baby vaginally before, there were no significant differences in poor outcomes between planned home births or planned hospital births.

Recent studies have shown that if you are expecting your first baby, there is an increased risk for the baby. You can read the key findings and statistics of the study here.  

Will I be refused a homebirth?

Occasionally, midwives may not be able to attend you due to our homebirth service being unavailable. This could be due to another home birth taking place at the same time or it could be due to staff availability. 

If this situation occurs when you are in labour, a plan will be discussed with you and your birth partner. All options available at that time will be explored. You may be invited to come to hospital for a wellbeing check. Rarely, we may ask you to birth in the hospital.

If you have been advised not to have a home birth, ask your community midwife to refer you to our Birth Options clinic. A midwifery advocate will support you to make an informed choice, and they will support maternity staff to plan for and respect your choice even if it is ‘against advice’. You can read more about making choices and shared decision-making here. 

You can also find support and guidance about choosing a home birth here.

How do I book a homebirth?

Let your community midwife know if you are planning a home birth. They will arrange an appointment at your home with you and your birth partner at around 36 weeks of pregnancy. This appointment is to talk through any questions you may have and identify where you may give birth. The midwife will advise if you need to prepare the area you choose to birth and how to do so.  You can also discuss preparing for a home water birth and how to hire a pool.

The midwife will also discuss circumstances where transfer into hospital will be recommended. Current evidence shows that the transfer rate (either during or following a planned home birth) is around 45% with your first baby and around 10% with your second or subsequent baby.

Ask your community midwife about our birth pool and TENS machine hire.