Author: Bridget Supple 
Author title: Coordinator: Foston Hall Prison Services with Birth Companions; Perinatal Educator, UK 
Description: Birth Companions is a UK charity specialising in the needs and experiences of pregnant women and mothers of infants in contact with the criminal justice system. Many of the women the charity works with will be separated from their babies at or soon after birth. For mothers facing separation and / or adoption, antenatal support is important, honouring the mother and preparing her for both birth and the potential for separation afterwards. Birth Companions offer antenatal and post-separation groups, and one-to-one emotional and practical support for women in prison, and those in the community, including women under probation supervision after release. After six years of running prison-based services, in this article the author offers some insights into good practice when working with women whose babies may be removed by the local authority and on a pathway to adoption.

---