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about us
Our History
Petals was founded in 2011 by Karen Burgess, our Chief Executive. Originally working as a counsellor within the NHS in Cambridge, Karen witnessed first-hand how critical her specialist counselling work was for bereaved parents. So when the funding for her role was cut, she was determined to keep it going. And so Petals – which originally stood for Pregnancy Expectations Trauma and Loss Society – was born. Since achieving charity status in 2013, the service has grown to the size it is today, with aspirations to expand nationwide.
Our Vision
Every parent in the UK has easy and timely access to specialist counselling following baby loss.
Our Mission
To provide and promote specialist counselling for parents across the UK following baby loss.
How We Will Do This
We are working towards providing a nationwide specialist counselling service for parents affected by any of the following:
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Miscarriage
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Poor pregnancy diagnosis
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Termination for medical reasons
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Stillbirth
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Neonatal loss
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Antenatal anxiety following a previous loss/losses
We are also working to mainstream specialist baby loss counselling so that it is included with best practice in all UK maternity settings