Who We Are
Singing Mamas are a national non-profit working across the UK
Weβre a grassroots movement of women including mamas, nurses, doctors, midwives, musicians, teachers and community workers who are all committed to improving wellbeing through singing.
We exist because suicide is one of the leading causes of death for women during pregnancy and one year after birth and because singing is clinically proven to reduce symptoms of postnatal depression faster than the usual forms of treatment.
Our Values
Connected
We empower women to grow together, we uphold and inspire one another with deep care and we practice from a place of self-love.
Courageous
We lead from the heart,
push the boundaries of
our creativity and willingly
step into discomfort.
Inclusive
We recognise inequality and work alongside women to create change
Our story
Singing Mamas was started by nurse Kate Valentine in 2010.
Back then, Kate was a mother of young children and singing in a group was how she managed stress, and found connection and joy. When her family relocated to a new area she couldn’t find a choir where her children would be welcome, and like many mothers didn’t have the option of going without them. A friend persuaded her to start a singing group where mothers could bring their little ones and singing mamas was born.
The movement grew by word of mouth. Women heard about this group through friends and wanted to go to one near them. Kate began to train other women in how to step into leadership and build song-sharing communities that improved health and wellbeing. Over the last decade Kate has trained more than 100 other women to deliver the Singing Mamas approach.
Our impact
Our work improves the lives and wellbeing of every person involved, from our group leaders through to the people who take part in our training and classes.
Our approach uses the NHS 5 ways to wellbeing which means that participating mothers:
- Feel more connected to each other and their baby
- Improve breathing, posture and muscle tension and physical
wellbeing - Stimulates cognitive function through learning new songs
- Give and receive from others and feel a sense of community
- Pay attention to the present moment and reduce stress hormone levels
Each week Singing Mamas leaders work across the UK delivering groups to hundreds of women
“These groups are essential! I have had 2 pregnancies, my first I attended no groups and suffered bad with PND. I truly believe my PND this time around has been kept at bay by being able to connect with others at Singing Mamas.”
GROUP MEMBER / NAME WITHHELD FOR CONFIDENTIALITY
Our leader training also delivers a big impact in health and wellbeing for the women who take part, as well as improving employability and building financial resilience
100% of leadership trainees demonstrated an immediate improvement in their wellbeing in relation to the 5 NHS metrics
87% of leadership trainees committed to taking on self-employed work in the 3 months following the training
100% of leadership trainees perceived they were better equipped to earn a living following the training
100% of leadership trainees reported they had increased confidence in entering / re-entering the labour market in their chosen field
100% of trainees reported that leadership training had given them the skills to undertake more flexible working arrangements
“I feel a deep sense of well-being after the in-person training. I have received affirmation and unconditional acceptance and encouragement. I have left with renewed belief in my abilities and in myself as a person.”
LEADER TRAINEE / NAME WITHHELD FOR CONFIDENTIALITY
Our Plans
We want the Singing Mamas approach to be available to every pregnant woman and women with babies under 1 and be part of maternity services within every local authority in the UK.
To help us do that ethically and sustainably we have made an equality, inclusion, diversity & anti-racism (EIDAR) commitment to guide our work. You can find the full policy here
- We actively seek to represent and serve diverse communities.
- We monitor the diversity of our leaders and group members so we can see where we are falling short
- We co-produce our EIDAR strategy with women who have lived experience of inequality, exclusion and racism
- We require all of our leaders to engage in EIDAR training, learning and ongoing self-evaluation
- We cultivate a nuanced understanding of the cultural origins of the songs we sing and address difficult legacies when we encounter them
Stay in touch
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Can you help?
As a not-for-profit we need support from funders and donors to realise our ambitions.
