We’re here to help you connect with others, find help and support, and settle in well to your life in the United Kingdom

If you would like referred to this group please speak to your midwife and she will pass along you contact details to the relevant people. Anaka Women's Collective | Facebook

This specialist midwife helpline in partnership with Five X More supports Black and Black Mixed-Heritage women and birthing people in the UK with any aspect of your pregnancy journey.

If you are a refugee or asylum seeker in the UK, we may be able to offer you practical and emotional support.

When you submit a query via the form, CANS will reply as soon as possible with advice toward receiving the right help.

Migrant Centre NI (MCNI) is a registered Charity (no.105750) and a limited company (no.611585) with 6 Board members and 9 staff members. The organisation was initially established as The Belfast Migrant Centre and officially recognised as a charity in March 2012. In 2014, to reflect the work of the organisation the name was changed to the current Migrant Centre NI. 

MCNI was established to protect the rights of migrant workers in NI, tackle racism, eliminate barriers against migrant workers, advance education and raise public awareness about their rights. MCNI has 3 offices across NI, in Belfast, Lurgan and Derry~Londonderry.

We are commissioned by public sector bodies and government departments from across the island of Ireland and deliver services to support, house and engage adults, young people, families and children who are -

• Facing family breakdown

• Displaced from their country of origin

• Living with an offending past

• Dealing with alcohol and drug issues

• Street homeless or facing homelessness

• Living with the impact of suicide 

• Dealing with mental health issues

• Engaging in alternative education and employability supports

• Mentoring for Children Looked After

• Members of the Traveller Community

Northern Ireland welcomes people from across the world who are seeking sanctuary from persecution. To help you adapt to life here make sure that you know how to get the support available to you, including healthcare, housing, employment and access to education.

To support parents to minimise the impact of anxiety or depression during their perinatal period.

For those parents who are 12-26 weeks pregnant and currently or at risk of mild to moderate anxiety and would like to see the benefits of active relaxation and mindfulness.

• Mindfulness Meditation

• Active relaxation

• Coping skills

• Social Support

• Awareness raising of Foetal development and couple or co-parenting relationship

• 6 week virtual groups work programme

• SELF-REFER BY RINGING NSPCC NI Hub on 02820441650 or staff can refer- see form below.

Referral forms below.

Roma- email- jillrobertson@surestartsb.org (see flyer below)

Chinese- email- saumei@surestartsb.org

If you’re more than 10 weeks pregnant or have a child under 4, you may be entitled to get help to buy healthy food and milk.

If you’re eligible, you’ll be sent a Healthy Start card with money on it that you can use in some UK shops. We’ll add your benefit onto this card every 4 weeks.

Apply via this website.

For those with 'no recourse to public funds' you can apply to explore eligibility.

Ask for an application form via email. Only use this email address if you think you cannot claim public funds because of your immigration status.

Healthystartclaim@dhsc.gov.uk

A pregnant asylum seeker in receipt of Section 95 is entitled to a maternity grant of £300. The maternity payment can only be claimed once but is available for each baby. Therefore, twins are entitled to £600. You must make the claim 11 weeks before the expected due date or up to 6 months after the birth. You can also claim if your baby was born outside the UK and you qualify for asylum support and your baby is less than three months old or in exceptional cases.

Extra payment for babies and pregnant asylum seekers

Pregnant asylum seekers can claim an extra payment of £5.25 a week during your pregnancy as well as £9.20 per week for a child under 1 year and £5.25 per week for a child between one and three years old.

To claim extra payments during pregnancy you must write to the Home Office informing them that you are pregnant, and include an original copy of either the MAT B1 maternity certificate (which is available from a midwife or GP from about 20 weeks) or a letter from your midwife or GP confirming the pregnancy.

To claim extra payments for babies and children under 3 years, you should write to the Home Office informing them of your child’s birth and age, and include the original full birth certificate for the child concerned. If this is not available some other original formal evidence confirming the birth should be enclosed.

Both maternity grants and extra payments for pregnant women and children under 3 years, are added to the weekly payments on your Aspen card."

We offer free, confidential bereavement support for individuals, couples, children, young people, and families, by telephone, video or instant messenger, wherever you live in the UK. We also offer face-to-face support from a number of locations."

When you submit a query via the form, CANS will reply as soon as possible with advice toward receiving the right help.

The project aims to support asylum seekers with advice, casework, and signposting to available local resources, on:

• The asylum process, sources of support and local resources

• Applying for refugee status, where and how to access legal representation

• Support for refused asylum seekers looking to make fresh claims

• Rights and entitlements, and raising safeguarding concerns

• Advice for those transitioning or those granted a positive decision

• IAA Level 1 Immigration Advice including:

• Applications for leave in line

• Settlement (Protection route) applications

• Travel document applications

Email the above referral form completed to asylumlinkbelfast@iom.int

The Mas project (Maternal Advocacy and Support) provides maternal mental health support to women who are pregnant and/ or who have children up to the age of 3. After the success of the pilot project and the development of Mas 1, 2020-2023 we have been further supported by the National Lottery Community Fund to deliver Mas 2 from 2023-2026 Our centre partners for Mas 3 are Windsor Women’s Centre, Ballybeen Women’s Centre, Atlas Women’s Centre, Women’s Centre Derry and Strathfoyle, and Grace Family Centre, North Belfast.

We will also train rural groups in our Mas model by providing training and support for organisations to set up a maternal mental health support group for women in areas where there is minimal support and women may face increased isolation.

"Windsor Women’s Centre is situated in the Village area of South Belfast and has been operating since 1990. The centre works within a community development framework to develop and promote equality of opportunity and champion practices and policies to better the lives of women and their families.

Situated in an area of high social and economic deprivation Windsor Women’s Centre provides much needed services to meet the diverse needs of women and their families from the surrounding communities.   The centre typically works with around 300 service users a week. The services provided includes access to a range of both accredited and non-accredited training and education courses, quality day care, after schools provision and advice and information."