Birth Hub Wellington - Who are we?
Pregnant Wellington & Hutt Mums - August 2013
We are a group of dedicated individuals from the birthing community in Wellington, New Zealand (parents, midwives, childbirth educators, natural therapists etc.) who are volunteering our time and resources to promote the importance of creating home-like, midwifery-led Birth Centres in the Wellington region, and to promote Primary Birthing in the community (where healthy women, with low risk pregnancies, choose to birth at home or in a Birth Centre).
We need skills and experience from all walks of life for this project, so if you think that Wellington region needs Birth Centres, please join in and help us. You can offer as little, or as much time as you have available. We get involved in the promotion of primary birthing (birth at home or in birth unit/birth centre) wherever we can in the region, and we campaign and advocate for primary birthing liaising with the local District Health Boards.
Many other places in New Zealand already have midwifery-led birth centres - Wellington needs them too! Ideally one in Wellington, one in the Hutt and one in the Wairarapa.
In July 2018 the Wright Foundation opened the first Birth Centre in the region Te Awakairangi Birthing Centre at Melling, Lower Hutt - feedback from new mums has been fabulous, which makes us only more determined to continue our advocacy for a midwifery-led Birth Centre for Wellington city.
EDIT: As of 23rd September 2021 this Birthing Centre has been forced to close due to lack of support and funding from the DHB and MoH. It has been run by a Charitable Trust since opening in July 2018 and all who planned to birth their had FREE maternity and postnatal care - we are continuing to fight for its reestablishment, and are offering our time and resources to support those midwives and pregnant people who have been affected by the closure. If you can help us, please do!
We meet regularly online via Zoom and organise various events and activities to promote physiological birth in the Wellington region.
Our thanks to Jo Frances Photography for donating their time and resources.
