A campaign has been launched to raise awareness of “birth buddies” who give women extra support when they are in labour.

A growing number of families are now choosing to hire doulas to give emotional and practical help from the late stages of pregnancy to the first days of motherhood.

They are not taking over the role of a midwife as they are not medically trained, but are there as an extra person to rely on.

They can give assistance with detachment and experience, which fathers and relatives may not be as well prepared to provide.

The idea is for the doula to be there every step of the way, giving encouragement and praise as well as passing on the mother's wishes to medical staff.

Fiona Mallett from Brighton has been working as a doula for more than a year and has already been present at several births.

She said: “The idea of having a woman around to give that support has always been there but is has only been relatively recently that they have been emerging to provide a specific role.

“It is not only about the mother. We also support the help the husband or partner as well.”

Support can range from something as simple as making a cup of tea to offer a massage to the mother or to cleaning up after the birth.

The Royal College of Midwives is broadly in support of doulas but insists they should not be a substitute for midwives or to cover for midwifery staffing shortages.