Ms Nina Doyle:

Féileacáin’s members are bereaved parents. I am here today as a bereaved parent as well – a proud parent to Liam and Grace. One of the things that strikes me is that mothers become entitled to maternity leave when their children are born at 24 weeks or weigh 500 g. In Féileacáin, it is not uncommon for parents who do not need the full maternity leave to get in touch. They might just want to get back to work. They are left with empty arms. They are left with that empty feeling of wondering what to do. There is nowhere to go. I spoke to someone yesterday. She talked about how there was no toddler group to go to. Sometimes, parents need to go back to work, and they do that. That is what works for them at that time. Maybe a couple of months later, the grief hits hard. That is when they need some time off. I remember going to a doctor’s surgery soon after giving birth. In a doctor’s surgery, you might be met with newborn babies and the emotion of that. When your baby dies, all of the things that people do so easily beforehand become hard. Every single thing is different. The world is no longer the same. Even going for a doctor’s appointment can be extremely traumatic, so having something like bereavement leave and being able to take it at the time you need it most, be that six months or nine months later, gives you freedom and breathing space. Just to take some time off is so important.

The current timeframe is disappointing and should be extended. Stillbirth is mentioned in the Bill, which is commendable, but it is a little tokenistic because a mother would not be able to take the leave. Thankfully, a father would be able to take a little longer than the two weeks’ parental leave, but mothers would not be able to. I remember when my twin babies died. It was really important to me that my family were able to take the funeral leave to which they were entitled. The grandparents were entitled to bereavement leave. This meant that my babies were being recognised in the way they should. That was important. The grandparents told me not to worry and that they wanted to be at the funeral and they would have taken leave no matter what, but no. They needed to be recognised legally and they needed to get what they were entitled to. Extending the timeframe and giving parents that freedom would be important.