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A group of newly qualified and student midwives are looking to prove just how rewarding the career is by starring in a brand-new fly-on-the-wall TV series, set to air on UKTV’s free to air entertainment channel, U&W.

‘The Young Midwives of Essex’ is an ambitious eight-part series from the makers of ‘Emma Willis: Delivering Babies’.

Billed as a hybrid documentary/reality series, it follows the midwives as they navigate their training on the busy maternity unit at Basildon Hospital, lectures, exams – as students at Anglia Ruskin University (ARU) - and their lives outside of work and study.

The first episode airs on Monday 25 November at 8pm, with the rest of the series then box set dropped and available on UKTV’s streaming service, U. In the series, you’ll meet Grace, 29, a mum-of-two who is a student midwife in the final year of her BSc (Hons) Midwifery degree, from Dagenham.

She hopes the show will help make people think about some of the misconceptions about young people in Essex. Grace said: “People might think that we’re just Essex airheads, I want people to see that we are more than that stereotype. We’re educated and caring people and there is a lot more to us than meets the eye.

“Especially for us as young midwives, we do have lives behind the scenes. When we’re at work, you just see the uniform and you don’t see the person behind it, so it’ll be nice for people to see the other side of our lives.”

Showcasing midwifery isn’t just for women, Howie, from Basildon, is one of very few male midwives on the ward. He said: “The majority of midwives are obviously female, so it's a real privilege to work with them and the families.

“This is not just a profession, it’s more of a lifestyle and the help and care we give to people; they are going to remember the experience for the rest of their lives.”

Featuring in episode one of the series is Mary, 22, from Basildon, whose passion for helping people runs in her family, said: “I’ve always wanted to work in healthcare, my mum’s a nurse, and my aunty is a social worker. I wanted to work with other people, so I knew healthcare was my calling.

“I wanted to take part in this show because we want to show people that despite us being young, we do have proper jobs, and we’re absolutely smashing it! I hope the show can help people to see this.”

The Trust was only too keen to open its doors to the production company Firecracker Films, who recorded the series, to show just how hard midwives work, their daily challenges and how committed there are to their profession and patients.

Nicki Abbott, Director of Women’s and Children’s Services, said: “We couldn’t be prouder of our midwives, they really are the stars and we are very excited to see this series broadcast. We hope it will encourage more people to join the profession.

“We’d also like to thank all the families who agreed to be filmed which helped to bring the stories to life. Being able to show the real-life aspect of midwifery, with its ups and downs and the huge rewards was a real privilege.”

Dr Louise Jenkins, Head of School Midwifery & Community Health at ARU, whose Chelmsford campus, and BSc (Hons) Midwifery students on placements at Basildon Hospital are featured across the series, said: “At ARU, we are very proud of our incredible student midwives and this programme gives the opportunity for people to really understand the work that it takes to be a midwife, alongside the impact that midwives have on the lives of the families they care for. We hope it encourages people to consider this amazing career.”

 

Adam Collings, Director of Programming, Factual and Factual Entertainment, UKTV said: "It's such a pleasure to have The Young Midwives of Essex coming to U&W, this show brings the perfect blend of these midwives' front line heroics and the reality of their everyday lives. I know U&W viewers are going to love seeing both sides of these amazing midwives' lives!"

 

‘The Young Midwives of Essex’ starts on U&W on Monday 25 November at 8pm, with viewers then able to stream the whole series for free on U.