Scroll down to find out more about our water birth pools and access a wealth of information about the use of water for labour and birth
March 2022 New midwifery research and studies Water birth in Sweden – a comparative study Waterbirth in low-risk pregnancy: An exploration of women’s experiences Water birth: a national...
Right from the start we have made education an important part of who we are and what we do. Browse through the categories below or use the search engine...
Our water birth pools are made by hand in the England in a clean, modern, well ventilated factory that conforms to all relevant industrial laws. Our waste disposal...
In a wet environment there is increased risk of slipping. Issues relating to Health and Safety, Manual Handling and plain common sense must be considered. Manual handling experts...
Choice of material is fundamental to the success of a water birth pool. Active Birth Pools are fabricated in Ficore® composite, a proprietary material of extra-ordinary properties that was...
"Freedom of Movement" The simple, short video has garnered over 11,000,000 views on YouTube. It shows how mothers instinctively relate to our pools and move naturally to find...
Active Birth Pools give midwives safe, practical options for dealing with emergencies. The evacuation a collapsed woman is potentially hazardous and poses risk of injury to mother and...
Safety comes 1st! Active Birth Pools are Rated No.1 for water safety and infection control standards. This is because the material we use (Ficore) is 5 x harder...
In mid-90’s we met with health service ergonomist Sue Hignett to discuss ways our water birth pools could be improved to better serve the needs of mothers and...
Many water birth pools on the market are equipped with features that at first might seem safe or even an advantage, but in reality present risks. (We're not showing images of...
The keyword that defines our approach to design is 'Active'. If we look up the definition of 'Active Birth' we get, "Childbirth during which the mother is encouraged...
Hospitals in the United Kingdom began allowing women to use specially designed pools of water for labour and birth during the 1980's. The wide-spread popularity and acceptance of...
I wrote this article a few years ago. It seems particularly relevant now. Recent news has highlighted the restrictive financial environment that maternity units will be expected to...
We've been supplying water birth pools to hospitals since 1989. Many of the pools we supplied in the 90's are still in active service! We occasionally receive reports...
Health Times: Karen Keast Water is a life force in more ways than one - it covers more than 70 per cent of our earth and we drink it...
"Introducing a deep pool of water to the birthing room is a way to make your labour shorter, easier and more comfortable. It increases your sense of privacy...
There have been accounts of women labouring and giving birth in water mostly amongst peoples living near a source of shallow warm water such as the South Pacific...
Water birth pools play a vital role in helping mothers experience physiological labour and natural birth. Nothing helps mothers cope with pain more effectively. If mothers are not...
Hospitals in the United Kingdom have been evolving clinical guidelines for the use of water for labour and birth for over 3o years. The protocols for operational policy...
Studies have shown that upright labour positions are associated with a reduced second stage, fewer episiotomies or instrumental intervention in contrast to mothers labouring on their backs. Many...
This article first appeared in Midwifery Today, Issue 115, Autumn 2015. There are many reasons to avoid last-minute cesarean sections that are decided at a phase of real emergency....
The birth of the water baby -... In 1977, a state hospital near Paris began quietly changing the way women gave birth. Obstetrician Dr Michel Odent believed that...
Originally published by Jessica Vogtman: November 27, 2016 Humans have an integral relationship with the element of water. It runs through our veins, we are born of it,...
Manual handling risks to midwives associated with birthing pools: literature review and incident analysis Prepared by the Health and Safety Executive
McKenna JA; Symon AG, (2014). Midwifery , vol 30, no 1, January 2014, e20-5. BACKGROUND: although Vaginal Birth After Caesarean section (VBAC) has been promoted successfully as one means of...
February 2015: By Chantelle Winstanley (Consultant Midwife) Submitted by Alyson Brown Natural Birth Centre Lead Midwife Queen Mary Maternity Unit West Middlesex University Hospital Contents Benefits and rationale for...
Originally published by Laurie Barclay, MD Medscape Medical News. Jan. 26, 2004 Laboring in water can be helpful in dystocia, according to the results of a randomized controlled trial...
Australian College of Midwives - 2013 This position statement should be read in conjunction with the Australian College of Midwives’ (ACM) position statement for midwives caring for women...
Bridge to Health - Sian Smith When considering their birth plan, more and more women are choosing to include the use of water at some stage. In fact, around...
Maggie Banks - RM, PhD, ADN, RGON The paucity of literature on labour and birth in water with breech- presenting babies highlights a need to share (and document) empirical...
20 November 2015: Since the early 1980s use of immersion in water during labour and birth has been increasingly promoted to enable women to relax, help them cope...
Excerpt from article published by Big Birtha who provides information and support for bigger mums and mums to be. All women are more buoyant and supported by water,...
Practice Points Ensure that pregnant women receive high quality care throughout their pregnancy, have a normal childbirth wherever possible, are involved in decisions about what is best for...
Michel Odent’s groundbreaking report “Birth Under Water” that was published in the Lancet in December 1983 is widely regarded as the seminal moment in time when the use...
Megan Cooper RM, BHSc (Honours), Jane Warland RM, PhD Helen McCutcheon RM, PhD. Abstract Water immersion for labour and birth is becoming an increasingly attractive option for women....
Originally published December 11, 2014 World-renowned social anthropologist and birth activist Sheila Kitzinger (1929-2015) was a strong advocate for birth in water, known as waterbirth. A voice for...
