Midwifery award will fund ‘digital toolkit’ to improve childbirth experience of Jewish women

A June 2026 report, co-chaired by Lord Mann and Dame Penny Mourdaunt, found antisemitism to be widespread in the NHS, with Jewish patients not confident they would receive proper treatment and deliberately hiding their Jewish identity.

In 2024, the NHS Race and Health Observatory’s Health Communications group identified systemic barriers affecting Jewish people across healthcare, including a lack of workforce understanding. A JC report last year revealed women were seeking support from private Jewish doulas or birth support workers to ensure their safety because they feared antisemitism in the NHS.

It is hoped that the proposed toolkit will help to meet these needs. The information is being produced in collaboration with Shifrah UK, a group of Jewish birth workers. Godfrey-Isaacs, who qualified as a midwife ten years ago is a co-founder and the current chair.

The award is presented by the Iolanthe Trust, a charity which works to improve childbirth services by giving grants and fellowships to support midwifery education, practice and research.

Laura Godfrey-Isaacs (Photo: Bethany Parkinson)[Missing Credit]

Chair of the trust Dr Elizabeth Bannon said that what made Godfrey-Isaacs’ application shine out was that it was “very innovative and creative, and it is a project that is extendable”. The digital model could be applied to other communities, she said, acknowledging the work of Shifrah UK as being “driven and courageous because it is hard sometimes to put your head above the parapet”.

Bannon added: “This is about coming together and ensuring that there's something provided that is easily accessible, that it is applicable and is going to improve the care of women.”

It is hoped that the training provided by the toolkit will count towards CPD or continuous professional development, which midwives must do to maintain their registration.

Nicolette Peel, who died of breast cancer in 2023 aged 50, was a midwife at Thameside Hospital. On receiving a second cancer diagnosis, she founded a charity, Mummy’s Star, to support families through cancer in or around pregnancy.

This is the third year the award in her memory has been presented, and it has special significance to Godfrey-Isaacs, who said: “This award means a great deal to me because I cherish memories of Nicolette as a wonderful colleague.

“I knew Nicolette as an extraordinary midwife and advocate, deeply committed to supporting women and families through some of the most challenging experiences imaginable.”

Godfrey-Isaacs said that during her own practice, she had referred women affected by cancer in pregnancy to Mummy's Star – “the wonderful charity [Nicolette] founded and championed. It is particularly close to my heart as I am a breast cancer survivor myself.

“There is something very powerful about the way one midwife’s care, compassion and commitment can continue to ripple outwards, supporting new work and new generations of women, families and midwives.”

The Iolanthe Midwifery Trust

Shifrah UK

Mummy’s Star