A mother from North Yorkshire, who endured a life-threatening mental health crisis following the birth of her first child, is marking World Mental Health Day (Friday 10th October) by launching Brighter Skies – a campaign and support initiative co-founded with her husband Andrew – with the aim of driving systemic change in perinatal mental health care and providing local, practical support for new parents in Yorkshire.
In the weeks after giving birth to their son, Harlan, 35-year-old Stef Scurr from Thirsk experienced severe postnatal depression which culminated in a suicide attempt. After reaching rock bottom, Stef and her baby were admitted to Nottingham’s Mother and Baby Unit – the closest one with space for the pair, as Leeds was full – where she stayed for six weeks while getting treatment and working on her recovery.
Having navigated that darkness and the fraught, fragmented support system in its aftermath, Stef and Andrew resolved that no family should ever feel so lost or so unsupported. What they encountered, including delays in access to specialist help, gaps in continuity and a lack of peer-centred community, has motivated them to act.
“The reason I launched Brighter Skies,” says Stef, “is because I endured the abyss and I don’t want any other mother, father or family to feel so utterly abandoned. If my story can shine a light so someone else finds help earlier, it will all have been worth it.”
Brighter Skies aims to:
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Spotlight the urgent gaps in perinatal support provision across Yorkshire, particularly in the Tees, Esk and Wear Valleys NHS Foundation Trust (TEWV)
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Advocate for the district to commit to embedding mental health midwives and specialist perinatal roles across community teams.
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Create accessible, community-based spaces where new families can receive support, connect and access professional guidance in a safe, nonjudgemental setting.
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Empower those with lived experience to share their stories, find their voice and shape future care systems.
One of the first tangible steps of Brighter Skies is the establishment of a weekly group in the Thirsk area, tentatively titled ‘Brighter Skies Together’. This will be a safe, drop-in space open to new and expecting parents, staffed by a blend of perinatal experts including midwives, peer support workers and nurses, alongside those with lived experience. The group will aim to:
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Provide emotional and peer support in a nonclinical environment
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Offer signposting and brief interventions where possible
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Foster connection so no one feels isolated or alone
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Enable early detection and a direct link for those needing more intensive support
Stef and Andrew are partnering with local charity, The Community Works, to launch the first ‘Brighter Skies Together’ group in the near future. The couple is also working to collaborate with existing groups and networks within Thirsk and surrounding villages to build a stronger community for new families, as well as encouraging local NHS, voluntary sector and perinatal mental health services to attend these sessions regularly. The hope is that these groups become a trusted, regular lifeline for families in the area.
Beyond immediate local impact, the couple sees Brighter Skies as a vehicle for lasting change. They hope that by sharing their lived experience, mobilising community voices and drawing attention to structural failures, they can influence health trusts, local authorities and government to reimagine perinatal care to ensure early intervention, continuity, professional oversight and peer-based models become the norm, not the exception.
They invite health professionals, local councillors, voluntary organisations and families to support, collaborate and amplify the campaign.
“‘Brighter Skies was born from our own perinatal experience – our struggle and determination to access the care we needed and that every new parent deserves. Early intervention in the perinatal period is not just important, it’s lifesaving. We want our story to spark real change, pushing for a system that prioritises mental health and supports families in those crucial early days, weeks and months of parenthood. Because no family deserves to be left in the dark.”
More information about Brighter Skies is available at www.brighterskies.org.uk, where you can also find the details of perinatal mental health support services.
