Doula UK Approved Courses

Welcome to The Doula Training Foundation

If you've been thinking about becoming a doula then you're in the right place. We've developed a 4 day immersive experience so that you will feel fully prepared to support women and their families during pregnancy, birth and the postpartum period. The course will give you everything you need to know in order to set up your own successful business. 

At The Doula Training Foundation, we are passionate about equipping kind, caring, and compassionate doulas with the knowledge and skills they need to support women and families. Our trainees are from diverse backgrounds, coming from all walks of life, often bringing additional holistic skills and therapies to enhance their practice.

Choosing the Right Doula Training Matters

Changing your career is a significant decision, you need to know you’re in safe hands. Our course offers a unique opportunity to train with two highly experienced, dedicated career doulas:

✨ Jemma - Successful doula since 2016, mentor, hypnobirthing teacher and closing the bones facilitator.
✨ Anne-Marie - Qualified “Train the Trainer” coach, mentor, and experienced doula since 2017.

Together, we have supported hundreds of women, from pre-conception to IVF, wild pregnancies, high-risk births, elective caesareans, and freebirths. With a huge knowledge base and years of hands-on experience, we deliver training in a fun, engaging, and practical way.

Why Train With Us?

Our course isn’t the quickest, cheapest, or easiest route to becoming a doula, that’s intentional.

We believe that becoming a doula is a calling, not just a qualification. We are looking for doulas who are:

✅ Truly passionate about supporting women and families.
✅ Committed to growing, learning, and developing their skills.
✅ Ready to invest in themselves to become the best doulas they can be.

In return, we give you our all.

✔️ A solid foundation of knowledge following Doula UK’s core curriculum.
✔️ Real-life scenarios, activities, and discussions to prepare you for practice.
✔️ Small, in-person groups to foster deep connection.
✔️ A full day dedicated to business skills—helping you get off to a strong start.
✔️ A spiritual element woven throughout the course, including guided meditations, cacao ceremony, and dedicated time for reflection, allowing you to connect deeply with yourself and your calling as a doula.

A Training Experience Like No Other

🤝 Face-to-Face Learning. We believe in the power of in-person teaching, where real connections are made.
📖 Comprehensive Course Manual. Packed with evidence-based information, research, and space for reflection.
💡 Ongoing Support & Mentoring. We don’t just train you and send you off. We provide:

• A one-to-one follow-up call after the course.
• A group Zoom after the course to check in, ask questions and build relationships
• Monthly Zoom meetups for continued learning and connection.
• In-person gatherings to build community.
• A members-only WhatsApp group for support and networking.
• A resource hub on our website with up-to-date research, signposting ideas, and customizable documents for your clients.

Our Commitment to Accessibility & Inclusion

💜 We are proud to offer a 50% discount on at least one place per course to individuals from marginalized backgrounds who are in financial need.
 💜 We also offer instalment payment options, please don’t hesitate to ask.

We Love What We Do, and We Want to Share It With You!

The more doulas we train, the more women and families can be supported. If you feel called to this work, we would love to have you with us.

💻 Visit our website for the most up-to-date course information.
😊 Have questions? Get in touch, we’d love to chat with you!

Join our comprehensive doula 6-month training program designed to create trauma-informed doulas capable of providing culturally safe care.

“I have had the most amazing time on the Developing Doulas course. I definitely think my soul needed this. I can see that this will truly change my life and how I interact with others. I have left this course feeling informed and supported and with a team of women that I can confide in. You are amazing and I feel very fortunate to have met you.”

The Course and the Community

The Developing Doulas course was born in 2008 out of a passionate desire to provide nurturing, community-based support through the transition to doula work. We are called Developing Doulas because we recognise that this role is one of lifelong learning. When we relish this ongoing development we prevent ego getting in the way of our belief that it is our clients who are the experts.

A wealth of research supports the beneficial effects of doula support and so we are committed to increasing the number of doulas in the world and by that, changing the lives of countless families.

But we also know that many doulas do not continue this work. It can be hard, emotional and lonely. So we strive to provide a safe, brave space for Developing Doulas to grow within a nurturing community. Regular online coffee mornings, Companionship (our in-house mentoring system) and dedicated, private online spaces to build friendships and collaborations providing you with the knowledge that there is always someone there to support you.

Our community is supported by our guiding principles, that we call The 7 Cs and our panel of patrons.

The quickest way to get a sense of how it feels to become a doula and join our community is to watch our short film. 

Our Founders, Facilitators and Curriculum

Developing Doulas was founded by Maddie McMahon – experienced doula, doula mentor, breastfeeding counsellor and author of ‘Why Doulas Matter’ and ‘Why Mothering Matters’ With a background in teaching and then two decades of doula experience, Maddie has written a course and gathered together a team of facilitators that share her ethos and who are all extremely experienced doulas. We have a proven track record helping hundreds of people follow their dream to become a doula.

❁ Five full days or the online courses with shorter zoom sessions spread over a month.

✾ Three full days if you choose our Specialist Postpartum Doula Course

❁A loving, informal atmosphere designed to help you ‘find the doula within’ in a small, intimate group of maximum 12 participants

✾ Courses round the UK facilitated by experienced doulas and Breastfeeding Counsellors

❁ All course participants get lifetime access to our substantial online course manual consisting of written materials, videos and audio recordings

✾Practical skills for birth and postpartum doulas – learning to ‘mother the mother’ by listening, holding the space and supporting informed decision-making

❁ Time to debrief and explore your own experiences, share and give and receive support within the group

✾ Explore the role of the doula and what it means to you, your family and the wider community

❁ Support and information on setting up and getting going as a doula.

✾ One to one sessions at the end of the course to reflect on the course and your future as a doula

❁ A set of guiding principles - our '7Cs' to support you on your journey

✾ Extend your learning and personal growth and benefit your community with the post-course project and our varied opportunities for additional learning.

❁ Certificate of completion

✾ Opportunities for ongoing learning and development of knowledge and skills through Developing Doulas workshops and work-from-home courses

❁ Cut price business, marketing and website support available to DD members and discounted access to our Doulavation course which widens and deepens the learning from your preparation course

✾ Our own Patreon platform where we can gather away from the noise of social media to share information, learn and develop our skills

❁ The Pam Lacey Award is for women who aspire to support breastfeeding mothers in their community. This awards 15% off the course fees.

✾ If you come from a marginalised group and wish to become a doula to support your community and need help to finance the course, please do talk to us.

❁ Payment in instalments welcome.

✾ Book a call to ask questions: developingdoulas.co.uk/book-call

Red Tent Doulas offers a comprehensive, trauma-informed doula training grounded in traditional midwifery, birth education, and postpartum care. 

Led by Nicola Mahdiyyah Goodall (click the link to check out her adventures on instagram) and the Red Tent family team the course blends ancient wisdom with modern practices, covering birth support, breastfeeding, menstrual health, and emotional well-being. The program includes deep trauma work and emphasizes culturally sensitive and non-clinical care. Graduates join a supportive, global network of doulas working to empower women and improve birth outcomes. 

Changing the environment the families live in with activism, learning from elders, falling in love. Flexible learning options and post-course mentoring available.

Payment plans available.

Lots of extra content from other teachers and discounts available for Red Tent family going forward.

Click through and read more about us on our website - even better check out our instagram @redtentdoulacollective

Watch Nicola Mahdiyyahs TED talk here

The Side by Side Doula Preparation Course is currently facilitated online, with 10 live sessions over a two-week period, or one evening a week for 11 weeks .