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This is our chance to make saving babies’ lives and supporting bereaved parents a political priority in Scotland  

Email your Scottish Parliament candidates and ask them to sign the saving babies' lives pledge.

What elections are taking place in May?  

In Scotland, decisions about areas like education, transport and health are made by the Scottish Government. 

On 7 May 2026, people across Scotland will vote to elect 129 Members of the Scottish Parliament (MSPs) - this includes local constituency and regional MSPs.  

The party with the most MSPs will form the next Government and be responsible for setting health policy in Scotland for the next five years.  

Elections are an important opportunity to raise issues with politicians from all political parties and make the case for fundamental change.  

Our vision is to build a network of MSPs in the next Parliament who have pledged to work towards a future where fewer babies’ die, and all bereaved parents get the care and support they need. 

We are calling on all candidates to commit to saving babies’ lives and ensuring that all bereaved families can access the care and support they need. 

Whilst stillbirth and neonatal deaths have declined in Scotland since 2010, there has been a lack of sustained progress and too many babies are still dying every year.  In 2024, over 250 babies were stillborn or died shortly after birth.  

When a baby dies, we know that bereaved parents still can’t always access the bereavement care or specialist mental health care they need through the NHS. In 2025, only 8% of bereaved parents in Scotland told Sands they could access the mental health support they needed through the NHS.  This is unacceptable. 

The next Scottish Government must make saving babies’ lives and supporting bereaved families a priority.  

 

How can I campaign during the election? 

There are several ways you can help us raise awareness of pregnancy and baby loss with your local candidates.  

1. Ask your candidates to sign the saving babies’ lives pledge

  • You can use our quick and easy tool to send a pre-written email to your local candidates which contains statistics and key information about pregnancy and baby loss in Scotland. 

    • Although the email is pre-written to raise awareness of pregnancy and baby loss in Scotland, you can also personalise the email to let your candidates know why baby loss is important to you.

    • This might include sharing your own, or a friend/ family member’s experiences of: 

      • pregnancy or baby loss
      • maternity and neonatal care
      • bereavement care  
      • mental health care

      You do not have to personalise the email if you do not want to, please make sure you do what is right for you.  

    Candidates are more likely to respond to a personalised email, as this makes emails look less generic. A quick and easy way of doing this, without sharing additional information, is by personalising the subject line. You will have the option of doing this in the form. 

  • Share the action with your friends and family. The more emails a candidate receives the more likely they are to respond and sign the pledge.  

  • Candidates are usually very busy campaigning during the election period, which may mean emails go unanswered. 

    If it’s been a few weeks since you contacted them, and you haven’t heard anything, it might be worth gently sending them a friendly chasing email. Some candidates may also have a campaign office, which you can call to speak with someone about the pledge. 

    You can search for your candidates contact details here: Who Can I Vote For?

2. Speak with local candidates and their representatives

  • During an election it’s quite common for candidates, or political party representatives, to knock on your door to find out more about the key issues which matter to you. You may also notice candidates attending local events, such as fetes or shows, to meet and talk with people.  

  • These are excellent opportunities to raise awareness of pregnancy and baby loss with them in person:

    • If you feel comfortable, you may want to talk about your own personal experiences of pregnancy and baby loss. Or you might want to tell them about maternity and neonatal services in the local area, and what you feel needs to change.
    • You may feel more comfortable raising general awareness of pregnancy and baby loss in Scotland. To help with this we have provided some key information and questions you might like to ask here: Information and questions to share with candidates Scottish election 2026.pdf

    There is no right or wrong way to raise awareness with candidates, please do what is right for you and remember we are always here to support here: How we offer support | Sands

3. Attend local events and hustings

  • During an election, local organisations or local media might organise something known as a hustings. This is where all local candidates are invited to speak and members of the public can attend to listen and ask questions.  

  • You may see a hustings advertised online, on social media, in the local press or on a noticeboard in community spaces.  

  • Sometimes if a hustings is organised by a specific organisation, there may be a particular focus on one policy area – for example farming or business. However, there is usually still an opportunity to ask questions about other areas – for example, health and maternity care.  

  • If you ask a question at a hustings, all candidates will usually be invited to respond and talk about what they and/ or their party would do. This is a great way to engage with multiple candidates at the same time. 

However you choose to campaign during this election, thank you for helping to raise awareness. Together, we will ensure that pregnancy and baby loss is the political priority it needs to be. 

The Sands campaigns team is always happy to answer any questions you may have or help you campaign during the elections. Please don’t hesitate to get in touch on campaigns@sands.org.uk. 

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