Perinatal Mental Health Services

Overview

This tender includes 2 lots. Lot 1 - Perinatal Mental Health Peer Support Service Lot 2 - Perinatal Mental Health - Dads and Male Caregivers Peer Support Lot 1 - Perinatal Mental Health Peer Support Service Sheffield City Council, as part of the national Best Start in Life and Healthy Babies Programme (formerly Start for Life), is recommissioning a perinatal mental health peer support service to provide early, accessible, and relationship based support for parents experiencing mild to moderate mental health difficulties [1]. This includes anxiety, low mood, stress, and supporting healthy parent–infant relationships. The need for strengthened peer based emotional wellbeing support has been consistently highlighted by parents and carers, including through the Sheffield Early Years consultation (2023) and subsequent engagement activity undertaken more recently. This has been running for 3 years and the aim is to build on, develop, improve and evolve what has already been implemented. Lot 2 - Perinatal Mental Health - Dads and Male Caregivers Peer Support Sheffield City Council, as part of the national Best Start in Life and Healthy Babies Programme (formerly Start for Life), is recommissioning a Perinatal Mental Health (PNMH) Peer Support Programme for Dads and Male Caregivers. This recommissioning builds on three years of delivery and responds directly to needs identified through the 2023 Early Years Start for Life Consultation, where fathers and partners highlighted gaps in support during the perinatal period. The aim of this programme is to help all new and expectant dads and male caregivers make the transition to parenthood as smooth as possible, with a strong emphasis on: • sensitive and attuned caregiving • positive early parent–infant relationships • good mental wellbeing for babies and their families