Private Midwifery Services with Sophie

Alongside teaching antenatal & postnatal courses, I offer private midwifery services in Buckinghamshire and the surrounding counties. Find out more about the different packages and what care I can offer below

The Complete Package: Full antenatal, labour and postnatal care with Sophie

  • A thorough booking appointment and then regular, unhurried antenatal appointments in the comfort of your home until your baby is born

  • Full continuity with the same midwife (Sophie) throughout pregnancy and support with any questions/worries you might have

  • Guaranteed access to a home birth as Sophie will be on call for you until labour starts. Once in labour, you benefit from having a known midwife provide clinical labour care. We know continuity of care is what contributes to positive birth outcomes for families and you benefit from having already built a relationship with Sophie prior to the birth, so a familiar face is there throughout.

  • A second midwife (who you will also meet beforehand) will also be present at the birth and helping to provide care

  • If you go into hospital, you also benefit from continuity of care in that Sophie is there and able to provide non-clinical support and advocacy

  • After your baby is born, you have immediate postnatal care with Sophie and the second midwife and then you have up to 2-4 weeks of postnatal care dependent on what you feel you need. This is at your home and includes ongoing, holistic feeding support and emotional support in the beginning of the fourth trimester.

    The Complete Package: £6700

Home Birth Package: For if you decide to have a home birth & private care later in pregnancy

  • Usually booked after 30 weeks, this is for parents who have decided to choose private care later in pregnancy, usually because they want a known midwife there when they give birth at home

  • It includes a thorough booking appointment with Sophie and then at least 2 further midwifery appointments - unhurried in your own home. This is important for us to build a relationship before labour and to make sure you both feel well supported

  • You have guaranteed access to a home birth as Sophie will be on call for you until labour starts. Once in labour, you benefit from having a known midwife provide clinical labour care. We know continuity of care is what contributes to positive birth outcomes for families and you benefit from having already built a relationship with Sophie prior to the birth, so a familiar face is there throughout.

  • After the birth, you have immediate postnatal care with Sophie and the second midwife and then can either have postnatal care with Sophie or be discharged back to the NHS for postnatal care

    Home Birth Package: £5400 (£4950 for current clients)

    Home Birth Package plus 2 weeks Postnatal Care: £5950 (£5500 for current clients)

Antenatal & Postnatal Care: If you want unhurried antenatal & postnatal care with a known midwife

  • A thorough booking appointment and then regular, unhurried antenatal appointments in the comfort of your home until your baby is born

  • Full continuity with the same midwife (Sophie) throughout pregnancy and support with any questions/worries you might have

  • After your baby is born, you havecan then you have up to 2-4 weeks of postnatal care dependent on what you feel you need. This is at your home and includes ongoing, holistic feeding support and emotional support in the beginning of the fourth trimester.

    Antenatal & Postnatal Care: £3000

  • It is an entirely personal decision whether private midwifery care is right for you. The key part of the care I provide is that we can build a trusting relationship which makes a huge impact on your experience of pregnancy, your birth and the postnatal period.

    Relationship based care is what most midwives want to provide but unfortunately can’t within the constraints of the NHS and so working outside of the NHS means we can offer the kind of support we want to.

    I love being able to provide holistic, unhurried care and really get to know my clients. It enables me to make sure I can support them in the way they need during labour and the postnatal period - which are such pivotal times for new mums in particular.

  • You can give birth at home and have full clinical care from myself plus another midwife who you will meet during pregnancy. If you choose a hospital birth I can support you throughout with non-clinical care and advocacy within the NHS system

  • There's lots of research on the safety of home birth including a huge review which looked at 500,000 births (Reitsma, April 2020). It looked at the outcomes of people planning home births & found that women intending to give birth at home compared to hospital were less likely to experience:

    • Caesarean sections and assisted vaginal birth

    • Epidural analgesia

    • Episiotomy or 3rd/4th degree tear

    • Oxytocin augmentation

    • Maternal infection

    Plus - home birth as safe as hospital and birth centre births for babies (adverse outcomes in less than 1% of births). We also have lots of data from countries such as the Netherlands where home birth rates have been around 30% since the 1990's, which shows no increased risk to babies from planned home births.

    Aside from the stats though, you get to give birth in the place that you’re most comfortable in with a trusted caregiver. You get to grab snacks from your own kitchen, use your own shower afterwards and get into your own bed! We can work around pets and older siblings as the entire experience is catered around you and you don’t need to plan a transfer to hospital at any point as you would if planning a hospital birth. Where you give birth is the most personal decision you will ever make and it is important to follow your gut instinct and choose where feels right for you - not based on fear or misinformation!

  • I am insured through a company called Zest - there is more information about this here

  • Absolutely! Most people pay by payment plans of their choosing, email me for more information about this

  • Drop me an email at sophie@thevillagemidwife.co.uk for more information - then we can arrange a chat about what you are looking for and what type of care would suit you best