Asiya has been a Parent Speaker and Hospital Liaison Volunteer for almost five years. She spoke to Sands for Volunteers Week about what volunteering means to her and how representation can make such a difference to bereaved families.
“I first became involved with Sands about five four ago when Madhuri [Sands Outreach Coordinator for South Asian Communities] reached out to me to form part of the South Asian round table in Sands – a group dedicated to finding ways to support and connect with bereaved South Asian families. I had already started ‘Asian Miscarriage Hub’ to give a voice to and break the taboo around baby loss in Asian communities, so it was great to be asked to help Sands to do the same.
From my work with Madhuri, she encouraged me to volunteer first as a Hospital Liaison Volunteer and then as a Parent Speaker.
Hospital Liaison Volunteer
“I am a Hospital Liaison Volunteer (HLV) at my local hospital who supported me through my fourth loss, and where I went on to have my living daughter. I felt I wanted to work with this hospital so I could give something back to the people that helped me so much.
"I take resources in, and signpost Sands support, not just to pass onto bereaved families but for the staff too. Although they are bereavement nurses, they still might not know that there is support for them too, that Sands helps everyone touched by baby loss. The staff at the hospital also deserve support whilst they are dealing with the losses they help their patients through."
Parent Speaker
"As a Parent Speaker I talk about what it’s like to experience bereavement as a South Asian parent. It feels important to me for people to see someone from the South Asian community talking about baby loss, and to know others like them are experiencing similar and they don’t have to push their loss down and not talk about it.
"As a Sands volunteer, I often get asked how others can help support bereaved parents, and I think “reach out, and ask for help, no one will judge you for that.” Sands is vital for giving that support; they provide information on how to help bereaved families, what you can say, what you shouldn’t say, and how to acknowledge their loss."
Part of something bigger
“Volunteering with Sands has been rewarding. I have been able to collaborate with them, and they have supported me in launching South Asian Baby Loss Awareness Week (11 – 17 August), which started last year (2025). This has allowed me to bring South Asian baby loss to the forefront and to have Sands’ support to do this has been fantastic.
"When Sands had their rebrand and launched their new logo last year (2025), that’s my most powerful and stand out memory of being a Sands volunteer. I really felt part of something, part of a community of belonging and it was wonderful the South Asian round table could be part of that conversation with Sands. It bought all us mothers together, from different faiths backgrounds and also from different stages of our lives, we were all different ages but came with the same mission of bringing change to in our community."
The more people see people like them, the easier it is for taboos to be broken.
"I would encourage anyone to step forward and volunteer with Sands, particularly those from South Asian backgrounds. The more people see people like them, the easier it is for taboos to be broken, and for them to ask for help and to talk about their own losses."
"Volunteering doesn’t have to be on a large scale, but if someone in your community knows you volunteer for Sands, they might reach out to you first because they trust you. That is the first step to them getting help, to finding support and community, and the first step to normalising these conversations. By sharing your time, you can greatly help others in the baby loss community."