Share your Tiny Sparks story

Your story could make all the difference

Every family who is supported by Tiny Sparks has a story. The middle-of-the-night worry, the first proper cuddle, the day you finally walked out of the hospital doors with your baby in your arms. Those moments matter, and so does what happened around them. We are building our evidence base to support future grant applications and impact reports, and the most powerful thing we can share is you.

Numbers tell part of the story. What really lands is a parent describing what a program meant to them, and what it meant for their child. Here's how it works. Share a little of your journey, whether that was a NICU or SCN admission, a high-risk pregnancy, or the road home. Then tell us about one of our programs you used and the difference it made. What did it change for you? What did it make possible for your little one? That's the part that helps us show funders why this work needs to keep going. To get you thinking, here are some of the ways families connect with us:

  • NICU and Bedrest Care Packages, for those first days on the unit or on hospital bedrest

  • Parent Circle, our online coffee and connection sessions

  • Baby and Toddler Playgroup, in person supported by Western Kids Health

  • Fuel vouchers, easing the cost of getting to and from hospital for follow-up

  • Special occasion gifts, marking the moments that deserve celebrating

Perhaps it was a care package that arrived on a day you needed it most. Perhaps Parent Circle became the one hour a week you felt understood. Whatever it was, we would love to hear it. We would love a photo or two to go with your words, so please pop them in when you submit, along with your consent for us to share your story and images in our grant applications, impact reports and promotional materials. As a small thank you for your time, we have some special gifts to pop in the mail.

Ready to share?

Preterm Birth Prevention in The Lancet

Lancet paper shows world-first Australian Preterm Birth Prevention Program is working!!!

New data has shown that a world-first initiative to reduce preterm and early term births in Australia has led to a significant decrease in rates of potentially harmful early birth, and improved pregnancy outcomes for women across the country.

Recently published in The Lancet Obstetrics, Gynaecology, & Women’s Health, the study presents detailed outcomes from a six-year preterm birth prevention program first introduced in mid-2018.

Findings have shown that:

From 2018-2021, through activities of the Alliance, rates of preterm birth (birth before 37 weeks) were reduced by approximately 8%. Preterm birth is the leading cause of death and disability in children under the age of 5 worldwide.

From 2021-2024, through the expansion of the Every Week Counts National Preterm Birth Prevention Program, an approximate 10% reduction in the early term ages was achieved (37-39 weeks – a period strongly associated with increased risks of learning and behavioural problems).

“We have shown that using current knowledge we have lowered the rate of harmful early birth by 7-10% which represents approximately 4000 fewer cases of early birth each year across Australia since the program was launched,” Alliance Chair, Professor John Newnham explains.

Community Conversation: Pregnancy perspectives of bacterial infections, screening, and treatment

The University of Western Australia’s perinatal research team wants to hear from mothers - prospective, expecting and current about what they know about bacterial infections and screening during pregnancy. Your experiences and insights will help to shape this research to improve understanding and prevention of infection in early life. This Community Conversation will be exploring understanding, experiences and perspectives on bacterial infection, screening and preventative treatments during pregnancy to gain perspectives, insights and experiences around Group B Streptococcus (GBS), screening and prevention and treatment.

Attendees will be offered an $80 honorarium (gift card) and light refreshments will be provided on the night.

WE SEEK:

  • Mothers - prospective, expecting and/or current

  • A mother who has had an infection during pregnancy or who has had a baby with an infection while you were pregnant (not a requirement to attend)

DATE: Wednesday 5 November 2025

TIME: 10am – 12pm (AWST/Perth time)

LOCATION: Online

 

Submit your EOI here: https://bit.ly/42JRZ8r