The Motherhood Society was founded in 2018 when my daughter Ivy was around 6 months old.

My husband and I had completed the Baby Journey antenatal sessions and I wanted to organise a Baby First Aid course for our group. I booked a space, hired Cotswold First Aid to run the training course, baked some cake for the participants and, as they say, the rest is history.

Personally, I was incredibly fortunate to have an amazing group of friends and we all transitioned together into motherhood in the same year. I had my ready-made village, a group of women that I knew and trusted, that I could confide in, moan to, learn with.

Lots of the women I met at other classes and groups however, didn’t have anyone. They had maybe moved to settle down, leaving support networks and social circles behind, and they were suddenly alone, with babies. No one quite prepares you for how isolating motherhood can be. You are constantly attached to another person and are never alone for a second, how could you possibly be lonely?!

Using my new-found lobe or organising events, I wanted to find a way to facilitate the same kind of support bubble that I had and so, the Motherhood Society Meet-ups were born.

We are incredibly lucky that as parents, we have so much on offer to us in Cheltenham. That was no different in 2018. There was Baby Sensory, Baby Massage, Baby Yoga, Baby Signing…anything you could think of, there was probably a class available. What I felt was lacking however, was something where the babies weren’t the focus. I wasn’t ready to lose myself completely, to morph into “Ivy’s mum”. We all know how it works, right from the off relatives and friends come to visit and they all want to hold the baby. You have grown and birthed a baby, your organs have shifted, your ribs moved, your body stretched. I have always wanted the focus of the Motherhood Society to be on you, the women, the mothers. Marching around a church hall mumbling “The Wheels on the Bus” doesn’t appeal to everyone. I absolutely had a few “what has happened to my life” moments.

To take that idea further, and enable women to do a little something for themselves during the week, in a space where their babies could also be safe and happy, I started the Self-care Sessions. As well as a caffeine-fuelled stay and play, once a month I would invite an expert, or local business woman to join us at an event focussed on women. We’ve had everything from manicures and massages to craft workshops and masterclasses. Talks on ways to lessen the mental load, how to incorporate mindfulness into motherhood, photography field-trips, make-up demonstrations and bullet journaling workshops.

COVID put a halt to everything. At best, it set us all back, in so many ways. But in 2023 the need for connection is greater than ever. Sometimes I wonder if what I offer is still required. Ivy is at school now, sometimes our meet-ups are only attended by a handful of people, but remembering why I started this community has reassured me that those women still exist, the need is still there.

So, I will keep planning events, working with and championing local female-led businesses, facilitating women to find their village and running the Motherhood Society.