A mental health service is extending support for bereaved parents to help them cope with enduring grief.
"EPUT By Your Side," run by Essex Partnership University NHS Foundation Trust (EPUT), now offers support for up to two years after baby loss, including miscarriage, stillbirth, or neonatal death.
Previously, parents and birthing partners could only access the service for up to one year after their loss.
Stephanie Lambert, principal practitioner psychologist and clinical lead for EPUT By Your Side, said: "We know that the emotional impact of perinatal loss does not follow a fixed timeline. For many, the intensity of grief and associated mental health difficulties can persist or even emerge well beyond the first year.
"By extending our referral window to two years, we are acknowledging this reality and ensuring more people can access compassionate, specialist support when they are ready to seek help. Our aim is to be alongside individuals during one of the most difficult experiences they may face, offering understanding, therapeutic care, and hope."
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The service, available across Essex, is supported by maternal mental health midwives and voluntary sector partners. It provides therapeutic care, grief therapy, and emotional support to those who have experienced loss during pregnancy or within 28 days postnatal.
Referrals can be made by GPs, midwives, health visitors, social workers, and other healthcare professionals.
The extended support window was announced during Mental Health Awareness Week, which ran from May 11 to 17.
Parents struggling with mental health during or after pregnancy, without experiencing baby loss, can still access help through other specialist perinatal services offered by EPUT.
EPUT By Your Side reflects the trust’s commitment to inclusive, personalised, and trauma-informed care.
The service is delivered in collaboration with maternity teams, mental health professionals, and voluntary sector organisations. It also demonstrates EPUT’s wider commitment to joined-up community care, prevention, and working collaboratively across the health and care system to improve outcomes for local people.
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