Events

Sep

20

**New event**: West Midlands meetup for all

Heterosexual couple

In person

Local meetup

Member event

Parent

Prospective parent

Same sex female couple

Same sex male couple

Single man

Single woman

You are warmly invited to the West Midlands General Group Meet up at Parkridge visitor centre in Brueton Park: Meet opposite Parkridge visitor centre in Brueton Park, Solihull at 1pm If the weather is ok, meet for a picnic lunch outside (big field opposite visitor centre) & go for a walk around 2pm. Alternatively, there’s a cafe in the visitor centre. Once meeting, there is an option to either walk around nature reserve & adventure playground, and/or walk through to Malvern park playground where there is usually a coffee van & ice cream van. Toilets & baby change are at the visitor centre. If Brueton Park car park is busy, there are other car parks around the parks & in town centre which are 15-20mins walk. There is also a carpark in Solihull 6th form college and a walk round via the path (if you walk via fields & marsh it can be boggy!)

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Sep

21

South coast / Solent Solos- Solo parents group

In person

Local meetup

Member event

Parent

Single man

Single woman

This group is for solo parents in the South coast area of the UK (including Dorset, Hampshire, West Sussex). To sign up and to find out more information please contact Victoria, group coordinator, by emailing dcn.southcoast@gmail.com [Do not make the booking here]

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Sep

22

Virtual Meetup for members in North America

Chat

Heterosexual couple

Member event

Online

Parent

Prospective parent

Same sex female couple

Same sex male couple

Single man

Single woman

Please join us to meet other DCN members living in the United States and Canada on Sunday, Sept 21 Sunday at 8pm EST This is an informal opportunity to get to know others in North America, chat about all things donor conception, and form some new connections. DCN volunteer, Joumana, will be facilitating the Chat.

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Sep

24

The Big Question: How is embryo donation different?

Heterosexual couple

Member event

Online

Same sex female couple

Same sex male couple

Single man

Single woman

Across the world there are thousands of embryos being stored that were created by individuals having fertility treatment. Parents who have completed their families may not know what to do with any remaining embryos and one option is to donate them. On the other side of the story, we know there are lots of people seeking fertility treatment who may be interested in embryo donation. Donating to these families could be a very positive solution for both parties, but there are some additional implications. For our third ‘Big Question’ webinar, we are exploring how embryo donation is a little different to just sperm or egg donation and even different to double donation or embryos created by a clinic from two separate donors. Firstly, there may be full genetic siblings growing up in separate families. Additionally, one of those families could be parents raising their full genetic children. Those close and overlapping connections raise some interesting questions about how to approach this type of donation. To help us discuss the topic we’ve invited Professor Vasanti Jadva from City St George’s (University of London) and David O’Rourke from Kin Donor Bank (UK). Professor Jadva is a professor of family psychology with extensive experience in studying donor conception families (previously at the Cambridge Centre for Family research and UCL) David is a Clinical Embryologist and the co-founder of Kin Donor Bank, a platform in the UK dedicated to ethical, human-centred embryo donation. The conversation will explore themes such as: • How is embryo donation different • Why might someone donate their embryos • What models currently exist • What important considerations might prospective parents want to take into account? • What we know about how children feel You can join in the conversation too. We’ll be open to written comments and questions from members, either when you register or live during the event. We’ll be recording the conversation and will put the video in the members’ area on the website shortly after the event. Anyone registered for the webinar will get notified when the recording is available.

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Sep

24

Heterosexual couples - Sperm donation - prospective and new parents

Chat

Heterosexual couple

Member event

Online

Parent

Prospective parent

Come and join us for a private space to discuss sperm donation in heterosexual couples with others going down a similar path. DCN Chat is a peer support online get-together. This DCN Chat will be hosted by Danny, dad to two children, concieved through sperm donation. All our DCN Chat facilitators are members themselves, volunteers, and hosting the chat as individuals. This is not a professionally led or educational event. Join us for a supportive space to talk to others in similar situations. If you find that you need further support, please dont hesitate to contact the DC Network office on enquiries@dcnetwork.org

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Sep

25

Heterosexual couples -Chat for those considering egg donation - Prospective parent

Chat

Heterosexual couple

Member event

Online

Prospective parent

A space for members considering egg donation, to come together to talk about shared issues. DCN Chat is a peer support online get-together. This DCN Chat will be hosted by Alex. *There is a separate group running for those undertaking treatment already – this group is predominently for thinking through this route to parenthood. All our DCN Chat facilitators are members themselves, and hosting the chat as individuals. This is not a professionally led or educational event. Join us for a supportive space to talk to others in similar situations. If you find that you need further support, please dont hesitate to contact the DC Network office on enquiries@dcnetwork.org

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Sep

25

Heterosexual couples -Chat for those undergoing treatment with egg donation

Chat

Heterosexual couple

Member event

Online

Prospective parent

A space for members who are in the process of undertaking treatment with egg donation, to come together to talk about shared issues. DCN Chat is a peer support online get-together. This DCN Chat will be hosted by Anna. All our DCN Chat facilitators are members themselves, and hosting the chat as individuals. This is not a professionally led or educational event. Join us for a supportive space to talk to others in similar situations. If you find that you need further support, please dont hesitate to contact the DC Network office on enquiries@dcnetwork.org

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Oct

4

Workshop: Telling & Talking (mum-and-dad families)

Heterosexual couple

Members and non-members

Online

Parent

TT

Workshop

This workshop is for parents of donor-conceived children aged 0-7 years. Not sure how to begin a conversation with your child about their donor conception story? Maybe you’re unsure about whether telling is the right thing to do? Or perhaps you’re concerned about who to tell and not tell in your life? Our Telling & Talking workshop is designed specifically with your needs and questions in mind. It provides a safe and confidential space for you to explore the benefits of telling and how to get started. This workshop is equally appropriate whether you had treatment in the UK or abroad, with a known, identifiable or anonymous donor or if your treatment involved surrogacy. You may be wondering how to start talking to your child about their donor-conceived origins, or you may have already begun this process and would like to explore what may come up in the future.

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Oct

4

DCN Autumn Conference - Bristol

Conference

Heterosexual couple

In person

Member event

Parent

Prospective parent

Same sex female couple

Same sex male couple

Single man

Single woman

Join us for our conference in Bristol! The event is a wonderful opportunity to connect with others, and to hear from knowledgeable and inspiring speakers including parents and DC adults. We’ll also have our popular Meet & Connect session over lunch, so you can talk to others about the things that are important to you. 𝗪𝗵𝗼 𝘀𝗵𝗼𝘂𝗹𝗱 𝗮𝘁𝘁𝗲𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗻𝘁? * People considering donor conception: If you haven’t had children yet, this is a great opportunity to hear from people who have been down this road already, as well as meet others at a similar stage. * Parents of donor conceived children: If you’ve had children this is a chance to meet other parents, to share experiences and get support. * Professionals in the field: Please do join us for an informative and thought-provoking event. The full programme and timings can be viewed below. Highlights include: **Bethan’s story:** hear from Bethan, parent in a two-mum family who also donated her eggs as part of their treatment **DC adults:** we’ll be hearing from donor conceived people, sharing their thoughts on donor conception, family and genetic connections **‘Meet and connect’ lunch:** get to know other members **Ruth Wilde:** hear from Ruth, a fertility counsellor for over 20 years, who will be describing some of the challenges she’s seen parents navigate and sharing what can help 𝗔 𝗗𝗖𝗡 𝗺𝗲𝗺𝗯𝗲𝗿𝘀’ 𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗻𝘁 This is an event for DCN members but to make it easier for you to join us, we are offering a ticket package for non-members which includes a conference ticket and 6 months’ DCN membership (membership is per household). There’s no fixed contract term for membership and you can cancel at any time, we just ask that you stay a member until the event takes place. There are loads of benefits to DCN membership (find out more here https://dcnetwork.org/membership-benefits) and we can’t wait to welcome you into our community! 𝗠𝗲𝗱𝗶𝗮 𝗮𝘁 𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝗳𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲𝘀: it’s really important to us that our conferences and events provide a safe, confidential space for us to discuss what can be very personal matters. We therefore do not allow journalists or media to attend unless they are joining in a personal capacity as a parent or prospective parent via donor conception or are a donor conceived adult. Furthermore, everything discussed within our events is confidential and may not be reported or shared outside of the event. We may therefore have to refund tickets from those who do not meet these criteria. If you would like to discuss this with us before booking, please do give us a call on +44(0)20 7278 2608. **Cancellations:** Tickets will be refunded in full before the 14th September but unfortunately no refunds will be given after this date.

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Oct

5

Dorset - Family meetup

Heterosexual couple

In person

Local meetup

Member event

Parent

Prospective parent

Same sex female couple

Same sex male couple

Single man

Single woman

Come and join members in Dorset: Sunday 5th October at 12pm It’ll be at the Great Park play park in Poundbury, Dorchester https://discoverdorchester.co.uk/the-poundbury-great-park-on-the-great-field/ Sign up here to let us know to expect you.

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