News post
Breaking the Cycle
11 Jun 2026
|
The Birth Companions Institute and NYAS launch national inquiry into intergenerational cycles of care involvement
The Birth Companions Institute and NYAS launch national inquiry into intergenerational cycles of care involvement
The Birth Companions Institute and NYAS (National Youth Advocacy Service) have today launched a new national parliamentary inquiry into the intergenerational cycle of care involvement in England, supported by Jess Asato MP and the All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) for Care Experienced Children and Young People.
Many care experienced women and girls face social care assessments, and even infant removal, when they become parents themselves. Recent research from King's College London found that women who had been in care as children were 17x more likely to have contact with children's social care during pregnancy than women without this history.
Through this inquiry, we will hear from people with lived, learned and professional experience of intergenerational cycles of care involvement, to understand what is working, what is not working and where we should be focussing our efforts for meaningful change in order to break these cycles and ensure care experienced women and girls are supported to give their own babies the very best possible start in life.
Phase one of our inquiry takes the form of a call for written evidence. Through two online surveys, we are asking care experienced women and girls, and those who have experience working with them through health services, social care, family justice, housing and beyond, to share their insights on intergenerational cycles of care involvement.
Later this year, the Birth Companions Institute and NYAS will be hosting a series of thematic oral evidence sessions in parliament and online, to explore key themes of the inquiry in more depth with invited experts with lived, learned and professional experience.
Our call for evidence for this inquiry is now open and will be accepting submissions until 4 September 2026.
Head over to our dedicated page to find full details of how to respond to the call for evidence, register your interest in our oral evidence sessions, and keep up with all the latest updates on this national inquiry.
Care experienced girls and women should have appropriate support as mothers and be able to give their babies the very best start in life. With this inquiry, we are putting the issue of intergenerational cycles of care firmly on the national policy agenda and working to drive meaningful change for mothers and babies. We hope you’ll join us.
For any questions about this inquiry, contact katherine@birthcompanions.org.uk
