Sands is asking bereaved parents and families to share their experiences of pregnancy, maternity and neonatal care following pregnancy or baby loss through our experiences of care survey. This is a regular survey we run every three years so we can see if there are any changes in the care that is being offered. Because of this we are particularly keen to hear from those who’ve experienced a loss in the last five years.
At Sands, we understand the lasting impact pregnancy and baby loss can have. Parents’ memories of the care they received at that moment will stay with them forever.
Every three years, we ask more recently bereaved parents and families to share their experiences of pregnancy, maternity and neonatal care through our Bereaved parents and families’ experiences of care survey. The experiences captured through this survey will give Sands valuable insight into how services provided during pregnancy, birth and after the loss of a baby are working, and where improvements are needed.
We will use these findings in our work to save babies’ lives and improve maternity safety and bereavement care through research, training and campaigning - find out more in the Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) below.
The questions in the survey cover your experiences of:
- clinical care during pregnancy and birth
- bereavement care following pregnancy or baby loss
- reviews and investigations
- post-mortems
- returning to work
- support available in the community
We are particularly interested in hearing from those whose pregnancy or baby loss happened in the last five years. This will allow us to compare more recent experiences with what we heard in our last survey in 2023. With these findings, we will better understand whether services are getting better, worse or remaining the same over time.
Too many bereaved parents’ voices go unheard. By hearing directly from bereaved parents and families, these voices can be used to strengthen our campaigns for change, when influencing policymakers, and in training for healthcare professionals and more.
If you have experienced pregnancy or baby loss in the last five years, and feel able to do so, please share your experience of care with us. Together, we can help drive meaningful change and save more babies' lives.
- Clea Harmer, Chief Executive, Sands
Share your experience of care – take the survey
FAQs on the Bereaved parents and families' experiences of care survey
What questions are asked in the experiences of care survey?
The survey will ask you about how and when your baby died. It will ask about the care you received during pregnancy, birth and following your pregnancy or baby loss.
If a review or investigation into your baby’s death took place, or a post-mortem was carried out, there will be an option to answer questions about your experience of care.
It will also ask you about whether you returned to work following your loss, and how you found that experience. Plus, any support you may have received in the community.
There are also questions about you, so we can understand who has taken the survey and help us to identify any themes.
You are able to ‘skip’ sections that are not relevant to you, and you should only answer the questions you feel comfortable doing so.
Why are you asking these questions?
Every three years, we run a survey like this to get a snapshot of how services are performing. We compare these survey results with those captured previously, to understand if bereaved parents and families are receiving better, worse, or similar levels of care. We want to hear directly from parents so we can understand if policy and other changes are impacting the care parents experience.
What will you do with the survey results?
We will use the information gathered in our work to ensure we are led by parents’ voices when we campaign for change, provide training for healthcare professionals and to improve the support bereaved parents receive following pregnancy and baby loss.
How long will it take to complete the survey?
On average, the survey will take around 15 minutes to complete the questions. We want to hear about individual experiences, so we have included a number of free text boxes so people can share as much detail as they want. We hope people will take the time to fill in these and tell us about their experiences, for those who do it will take longer to complete the survey.
We recognise that this may take you a significant time to complete, that this may not be the first time you’ve shared your experiences in the form of a survey, and the impact this has. Please do what is right for you and only complete the survey if you feel able to.
I took part in the last survey in 2023, should I take part again?
If you took part in a similar survey for Sands in 2023, you do not need to complete the survey again - unless something has changed since you took part. We have already captured your experience. Thank you for taking part.
If you have experienced an additional pregnancy or baby loss within the last five years, please feel free to share your experiences in this year’s survey.
My loss was more than 5 years ago, can I take part?
We will use the findings from this survey to compare more recent experiences with what we heard in our last survey in 2023. With these findings, we will better understand whether services are getting better, worse or remaining the same over time.
That's why we are particularly interested in hearing from those whose pregnancy or baby loss happened in the last five years.
If your loss was more than 5 years ago and you would still like to take part, you are welcome to do so.
I shared my experiences in the National Maternity and Neonatal Investigation in England. How is this different?
We understand this may not be the first time you’ve been asked to share your experience following pregnancy or baby loss in the form of a survey. And that this can have a big impact on you. Please do what is right for you and only complete the survey if you feel able to.
This survey is specifically to support Sands in its work to save babies’ lives and support bereaved families.
When will the experiences of care survey results be published?
We aim to publish the results in early 2027. If you take part in the survey, we will be in touch nearer the time to tell you exactly when this will be. If you’re signed up to receive updates from Sands, we will share the report with you when it’s published. We will also share the findings on our website and social media.