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Police officer 'needed more support after miscarriage'

Rowenna Hoskin
BBC News
Alison Robinson Alison Robinson grins at the camera, her arm around one of her young daughters. Alison is wearing a pink hat and grey scarf. She has blonde hair. Her daughter has blond hair and is wearing a pink jumper, she is grinning at the camera. Behind them is Alison's partner who is wearing a blue and green hat and a blue hoodie. He has his arm around their second daughter who has brown hair and is wearing a floral blue top and a pink and purple knitted jumper. The family are taking the selfie on the beach. Alison Robinson
Alison Robinson and her partner Paul moved with their her two daughters Rhian and Seren to south Wales

When Metropolitan Police officer Alison Robinson had a miscarriage, she said it was brushed under the carpet and forgotten about.

While she says she had a "lovely line manager", they did not know how to talk to her about it, so "we just didn't talk about again".

It was only when she joined a baby loss peer support group within the force that Alison got the support she needed.

Two years ago, Alison transferred to South Wales Police and found there was no existing support group there - so she set one up herself.

It comes as the UK government backed miscarriage bereavement leave on Tuesday.

Speaking to BBC Radio Wales Breakfast on Wednesday, Alison, 40, said her parents used to speak to her about baby loss because her twin was stillborn.

Yet when she herself had a miscarriage at 10 weeks, she felt "very lonely".

"For me personally, I wanted to go back straight into work, but I wasn't aware of what support that was available or anyone I could speak to about it," she said.

Alison then discovered that the Metropolitan Police had set up a baby loss peer support group, and she joined as a volunteer.

"It was a fabulous way of making sure that anyone that was going through a loss was able to receive the support they needed," she said.

With one in four pregnancies ending in miscarriage, this is incredibly important, she said.

Alison Robinson Alison crouches down holding her daughter Seren on her hip. Alison has a watersports vest on and is wearing her hair in plaits. Seren, 3, is wearing a white hat and a pink floral coat with faux fur around the hood. Alison's husband Paul Robinson stands behind them wearing a blue and green hat and a black coat. He is holding daughter Rhian, 5, who is wearinga matching white hat with Seren, and a pink horse cartoon waterproof jumpsuit. The family are on a beach.Alison Robinson
Alison said she and her family are enjoying living in south Wales

Alison moved to Carmarthenshire two years ago with husband Paul and their daughters Rhian, five, and Seren, three.

She said when she moved to the South Wales Police force there was no existing support group for women who had experienced miscarriages, but now they are a team of 17.

"We've all had training how to support someone going through a loss," she said.

Alison said "it is a very individual process" and so the team are there to support, signpost to more specialist support and also help line managers with policy.

She said it is "brilliant" society has changed and miscarriage "is not seen as such a taboo subject to talk about".

"I think there is a lot more recognition throughout policing, throughout public and private sectors, as well as the impact that the loss of a baby can have on an individual and on their partner and also their family," she said.

The UK government said on Tuesday that it supports bereavement leave for couples who experience a miscarriage.

Business Minister Justin Madders told MPs he "fully accepts" the principle of bereavement leave for pregnancy loss and promised to look at adding the right to the Employment Rights Bill.

Currently employees are eligible for parental bereavement leave if they or their partner have a stillbirth after 24 weeks of pregnancy.

Labour MP Sarah Owen, who chairs the Women and Equalities Committee, has been calling for this right to be extended in cases where miscarriages take place before 24 weeks.

Cath Loosemore, gender network Chief Inspector for South Wales Police, said she thinks the move is "really positive" and will be looking at how the groups can "replicate that in South Wales Police".

Ms Loosemore said: "We can put in policies and guidance and that's great, because it gives line managers the opportunity to know what's available to them.

"But the most important thing to do is to sit down and to ask, 'what do you need from me right now? What can I do right now to support you during this time?'"