With Parliament soon rising for recess, now is a good time to look back on what has been achieved, what progress has been made, and where we still have work to do.
Since I entered Parliament in 2015, I have been fighting for a National Bereavement Care Pathway and to ensure that parents who lose a child have the support they need. While the overwhelming reaction of everyone, MPs, Ministers and media, has been kindness, at times it felt like this was an uphill struggle.
Recently however, this has started to change. The groundwork we have laid over the last two years has grown and there is now a steady drip of good news. There are 32 pilot sites now live at NHS Trusts across the country, up from 11 last year.
We visited one of these, Chelsea and Westminster in March and saw for ourselves how this plan is unfolding on the ground. It was fantastic to meet doctors and patients and see the improvements that the Pathway has made.
The interim evaluation report in April was further positive news, outlining the feedback from doctors and patients. This laid the foundation for the Government to announce that it would fund the rollout of the programme later this year.
None of these changes will make up for the loss of a child, and the grief will still be unbearable. However, I am proud that these changes have taken place, and that Government understands the importance of ensuring that parents have this support in place.
The profile of this issue has never been higher, and the Government is supportive. While it has been a long few months, this is one area where it feels as though we have momentum and I look forward to returning after the summer to ensure that this fantastic progress is built upon.