The first Birthrights Day is being launched to shine a light on women and birthing peoples’ basic human rights in maternity care with the slogan – Your body. Your birth. Your rights.
The date — 26 September — has been chosen by the charity Birthrights because it is the most common day to be born in England and Wales, with Office for National Statistics analysis showing an average of around 2,000 births on that date, compared with around 1,800 if births were evenly distributed across the year for other dates. The late-September peak makes 26 September a powerful moment to talk about what respectful, rights-based maternity care should look like for every woman and birthing person.
On one of the busiest days in the maternity calendar, Birthrights is using the awareness day to highlight that systemic racism, lack of safe staffing and toxic work cultures are leading to rushed care, denied choices, and systemic human rights violations. Whether someone is giving birth on 26 September or any other day of the year, the message remains the same:
Your body. Your birth. Your rights.
The charity Birthrights exists to protect human rights in childbirth and provides advice, resources, campaigning and research to support people to understand and assert their rights in maternity care.
Birthrights CEO Hazel Williams said: “Birthrights Day is an opportunity to remind everyone that maternity rights are not optional extras — they belong to every woman and birthing person.”
“Our message is simple: Your body. Your birth. Your rights. Everyone deserves to be listened to, respected and supported to make informed decisions about their care and what happens to their body in pregnancy and childbirth, free from discrimination.”
Put simply your human rights in maternity care include:
- 1)“The right to be listened to.”
- 2)“The right to clear information.”
- 3)“The right to make informed decisions about your body and your care.”
- 4)“The right to give accept or say no to any care or treatment you are offered.”
- 5)“The right to be treated with dignity and respect.”
- 6)“The right to receive care without discrimination.”
To help get this message across, Birthrights has partnered with filmmaker Amie Hill, who donated her time to compile a one-minute awareness film, after coming across the charity following issues around the births of her own two children.
Birthrights Communications Manager, Joanna Barr, said: “Birthrights is extremely grateful to Amie for donating her time to bring together the little clips which we filmed selfie-style on our phones, and which are introduced by nine-time Paralympic Champion Hannah Cockcroft CBE.”
“We know this film won’t be like Amie’s usual work as we filmed it and gave her very little time to bring the clips together but we hope it will help to get across some clear messages around rights in birth and help educate current and future generations of women and birthing people.
Hannah Cockcroft CBE: said: “I was happy to take part in the film, as I now have a beautiful 4-month-old girl called Rosie.
“Thankfully, I had a great birth experience, although my experience during pregnancy varied, largely because of my disability and the lack of knowledge, research or understanding the maternity professionals have so I think it is vital all women and birthing people know their rights.”
Amie, who lives in Surrey and kindly also agreed to read one of the lines in the film said: “I knew as soon as I found out about Birthrights that I wanted to help support their cause. My pregnancy journey wasn’t easy, and often I felt as if I didn’t have a voice or wasn’t listened to. If there is any way I can use my skills to spread awareness to prevent this happening with others, I am proud to be part of that mission.”
Call to action
To mark Birthrights Day, supporters are encouraged to share a selfie (photo or video) of themselves on social media on Saturday 26 September 2026 with the hashtags #YourBodyYourBirthYourRights and/or #BirthrightsDay. They are also encouraged to visit birthrights.org.uk to watch the film and download further information about their rights.
Hazel added: “The most recent national maternity enquiries highlight the consequences of deepening inequalities, systemic racism, persistent violations of our human rights and the ongoing crisis in maternity services. The protection of human rights provides a clear framework to ensure everyone’s dignity, bodily autonomy and choice are protected, free from discrimination.”
-ends-
Notes to editors:
- Birthrights is a UK charity working to protect human rights in pregnancy and childbirth.
- The charity provides advice and information, produces resources, conducts research and campaigns for systemic change in maternity care.
- Further information about Birthrights’ work, campaigns and resources is available at birthrights.org.uk
Media contact
For further information/ media enquiries/ interviews please contact [email protected] or call or WhatsApp message 07498 554537.
Learn more about this campaign