About
The original, biggest and most respected Baby Calming organisation in the UK.
BabyCalm® is a unique concept, presented through classes and literature, that aims to empower new parents to raise their baby with confidence. BabyCalm® helps new parents understand how to calm their baby's crying, avoid colic and aid restful sleep; turning crying babies and stressed parents into calmer babies and happier parents!
BabyCalm® was founded in 2007 by Sarah Ockwell-Smith, a mother of four and joined in January 2011 by Charlotte Phillips, a mother of one, both from Saffron Walden in Essex. UK. Sarah and Charlotte trained over 100 BabyCalmer's nationwide in their first year of business alone! 2012 sees BabyCalm's launch into Australia, Dubai, Hong Kong, New Zealand and Spain with a USA launch planned for 2013. Spring 2012 sees Sarah and Charlotte launch ToddlerCalm®, classes for calmer toddlers and happier parents, nationwide and October 2012 sees the international release of Sarah's book "BabyCalm: A Guide for Calmer Babies and Happier Parents."
Follow the BabyCalm blog for up to date articles, news, gossip and more
Media requests
Both Charlotte and Sarah are accomplished public speakers and are available for interviews on television and radio as well as for printed media. A range of parent stories and testimonials concerning the unique BabyCalm® baby calming concept can be provided upon request.
For all press and media enquiries please email press@babycalm.co.uk in the first instance.
Sarah's Story
Sarah is a mother of four who initially trained as a Psychologist, specialising in Developmental (baby and child) Psychology at University. Since then she has undertaken training in hypnotherapy, psychotherapy, homeopathy, HypnoBirthing, infant first aid and baby massage. She is also a birth and postnatal Doula (birth companion and new mother's supporter). She also enjoyed a five year long career working in the Pharmaceutical Industry in Research and Development (Clinical trials) and so particularly values science and evidence based practice.
Sarah's passion has always been for babies and children and she chose to specialise in this area professionally in 2002 after the birth of her firstborn. Since then she has worked with over 1000 families; helping them to settle into life as a new family as well as adding to her brood herself.
BabyCalm® started life in Sarah's living room in 2007, however the uniqueness of Sarah’s BabyCalm® work was realized in 2010 and the phenomenal demand for her services meant that Sarah needed to expand her company and train new BabyCalm® teachers all over the UK. The response for this training was phenomenal with over 100 UK BabyCalmers being trained in the first year alone. 2012 sees BabyCalm's launch into Australia, Dubai, Hong Kong, New Zealand and Spain with a USA launch planned for 2013.
Sarah believes strongly that all parents and babies deserve the calmest start in life, no matter what their beliefs or parenting styles. Sarah was struck that many of the subjects she talks about on her courses only seemed to belong to the realms of earth mothers and alternative types; whereas mainstream parenting products and advice given by the likes of Gina Ford, Tracey Hogg, Tizzie Hall and Supernanny, focussed on prescriptive routines and products to aid separation of mother and baby. She was also struck by quite how many parenting gurus gave strong opinions with little or no scientific evidence (or even parenting experience of their own!) to back up their claims. This, she believes, disempowers new parents who feel they lack this natural empathy and understanding, feeling the need to look to others to advise them on how to care for their own baby when in fact our best experts are our own instincts!
Sarah strives to help parents to not only calm and understand their babies, but to help them to trust their instincts and make their own parenting decisions - confidently - without relying on somebody else's routines or manuals.
Sarah is currently writing an easy to read trilogy of books about instinctive and gentle parenting from pregnancy to toddlerhood which she views as an anecdote to the myriad of "parenting expert" books aimed at new parents currently available. Her first book, "BabyCalm - A Guide for Calmer Babies and Happier Parents" will be released by Piatkus (part of the Little, Brown Publishing group) in October 2012 and a copy can be pre-ordered HERE. Sarah also blogs regularly HERE. Sarah is a very established public speaker and is happy to present at meetings, baby shows and conferences as well as contributing to television interviews and newspaper and magazine articles.
Charlotte's Story
Charlotte graduated with a history & politics degree and worked in corporate business development, before setting up her own business at the age of 23. Over the last ten years, her business activities have taken her on an international journey through motorsport, manufacturing, distribution and retail. Charlotte is passionate about business and thoroughly enjoys the thrill of making a great concept come to life.
She lives in Saffron Walden with her husband Sam and their 1 year old son Arthur. Having been terrified of giving birth, Charlotte took Sarah’s HypnoBirthing® class; she went from considering an elective c-section to giving birth at home in a pool with no pain relief. She says that it was the most empowering experience of her life and enjoyed every minute of it. No one was more surprised than she, that she had given birth in such a way.
And so began a great passion and interest in natural childbirth and rearing. Having taken Sarah’s BabyCalm ® class, the realization that being in tune with one’s own baby meant that her baby was content and so was she and her husband, further reinforced her belief that there was no need for instructions, regimes and charts telling her what to do when; just tuning in to her instincts and viewing the world through her babies senses meant that everyone was happier.
Charlotte met other mothers and saw firsthand how parents with fractious babies were able to gently sooth and calm them through the BabyCalm® Techniques and was overwhelmed with its success. With so many books and practitioners doing the rounds, spouting the do’s and don’ts of good parenting, disempowering the mother while programming the baby; Charlotte felt that there was more than a space for BabyCalm® in the market, there was a social responsibility for it to be more widely available.
A year of discussions and development, Sarah and Charlotte now have their plan in place and a joint venture will see them deliver the concept to as many new mothers as they can; because calmer babies make happier parents.