National Fertility Awareness Week takes place from 30 October to 5 November. Ahead of this important week, Nickie Aiken, Member of Parliament for the Cities of London & Westminster, spoke out in a Westminster Hall debate to raise awareness of infertility and challenge the attitudes and stigma towards it.

Infertility does not discriminate. It can affect any one of us, and the NHS estimates that around one in seven couples may struggle to conceive. 

It’s so important people dealing with fertility issues get the support they need. That’s why Nickie is proud to have launched the Fertility Workplace Pledge and encourage employers to sign up to a set of simple and voluntary commitments which will benefit millions of individuals and couples going through fertility treatment. Working with organisations such as Fertility Matters at Work, Burgess Mee Family Law, and Fertility Network UK, the Fertility Workplace Pledge has secured the backing of a number of national companies, including NatWest, Channel 4, and Aldi UK. Read more about the Pledge here.

But Nickie knows there is further to go in ensuring everyone has equal access to fertility treatment, especially for the LGBTQ+ community. And in today’s debate, she welcomed the Government’s commitment to making access to IVF fairer, but made the case to speed up the implementation of the policy change.