Dorset's Cygnet Homebirth midwives celebrate seven years at Swannery
The team celebrated their seventh birthday with day old cygnets at Abbotsbury Swannery.
The Dorset County Hospital Cygnet Homebirth Team is celebrating it's seventh anniversary.
Abbotsbury Swannery holds a special meaning for the team as they derive their name from the baby swans, and it's where they launched in 2015.
In that time home birth rates in Dorset have risen massively above the national average from 2% to around 10% of all births.
Senior Midwife Tara Pointer-Putt was there when the team launched. She spoke to Greatest Hits Radio yesterday with a day old cygnet in her hands.
"It's amazing. When we started the team the homebirth rate was around 2.3% in the area and now we've got up to a consistent 8-10% which is possibly one of the highest in the country.
"We just wanted to be able to provide continuity of care for women that choose to have a home birth which is what we've achieved. Women get to know their midwife, they feel more relaxed and it's just a nicer experience obviously for us as well."
The visit coincided with hatching season at the swannery meaning lots of day old cygnets were seen in nests with their parents.
Tara added:
"Obviously we're the Cygnet Team so it's very fitting to come here and it's a lovely experience to see all the cygnets. We've invited families that we've looked after so it's nice for them to come and see the swans and the cygnets as well."