Donor Conception Network

Donor Conception Network We offer information, support & community to donor conception families. Join us! We also greatly appreciate any donations.

💙Join Us 💙

We offer information, support & community to anyone considering or already using an egg, sperm or embryo donor to create or expand their family. Join us 😊 https://www.dcnetwork.org

💙 Make a Donation 💙

We rely heavily on the generosity of our members and supporters to fund the vital work we do. If you're able to donate, you can do so here:
https://www.dcnetwork.org/donate

Thank you!

NEW to the DCN bookshop - a lovely story to help young donor conceived children understand the connection they share wit...
03/10/2026

NEW to the DCN bookshop - a lovely story to help young donor conceived children understand the connection they share with donor siblings.

We loved this book so are delighted to be stocking it in the DCN bookshop. Written by Sharon Leya and illustrated by Janne Maru, 'My Donor Sibling Club' is a reassuring story for children aged 2–7 who have met, or are preparing to meet, their donor-conceived siblings.

With simple language and fun illustrations, the story introduces ideas about family, identity and belonging, while helping children explore the different ways families can be connected. It can also provide a starting point for conversations about donor siblings and their relationships.

“A warm, child-centered story that helps normalize donor sibling relationships with honesty, clarity, and care.” Jana Rupnow Counseling , author of, “Three Makes Baby: How to Parent Your Donor-Conceived Child”

The book is part of the wider My Donor Story range, which includes bespoke and ready-made stories for different family and donation types.

‘My Donor Sibling Club’ is available from the DCN bookshop for £11+P&P https://dcnetwork.org/product/my-donor-sibling-club/

DCN is a UK registered charity (no. 1041297) and all purchases fund our work supporting donor conception families and those considering this route to parenthood.

𝗪𝗵𝘆 𝗱𝗼 𝗱𝗼𝗻𝗼𝗿𝘀 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵𝗱𝗿𝗮𝘄 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘀𝗲𝗻𝘁?A recent case involving a s***m donor who withdrew consent after embryos had already been...
02/10/2026

𝗪𝗵𝘆 𝗱𝗼 𝗱𝗼𝗻𝗼𝗿𝘀 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵𝗱𝗿𝗮𝘄 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘀𝗲𝗻𝘁?

A recent case involving a s***m donor who withdrew consent after embryos had already been created raises some important questions about donor counselling and support.

What happens when a donor’s feelings or circumstances change? Are donors given enough opportunity to explore the possible long-term implications of their decision, including the possibility of future contact with donor conceived people? And should donors have access to ongoing support as their lives and feelings evolve?

In her latest blog, DCN Director Nina Barnsley explores these questions and argues that we need more research into why donors withdraw consent so we can build in better support and counselling from the outset.

Read the blog here: https://dcnetwork.org/why-do-donors-withdraw-consent/

Sign up to our mailing list to receive Nina’s monthly blog, along with occasional news, information and resources from DCN

Check out all the great things going on at DCN this month for donor conception families.Most of our online chats and mee...
01/10/2026

Check out all the great things going on at DCN this month for donor conception families.

Most of our online chats and meet-ups are a benefit of DCN membership, so you won't be able to book onto them if you're not yet a member. The good news is that we offer a monthly membership subscription for just £8 per month (£6 for those on lower incomes) so you don't need to pay for the full year up front. Membership has loads of benefits - as well as the online chats, you have access to 90+ WhatsApp groups, to conferences, weekly e-newsletters, a printed magazine and much more.

Find out how we can support your family by visiting our website. Find the link in our profile.

A walk, a chat and some very happy dogs! Frances and Rachel from the DCN community joined yesterday's Walk & Talk on Ham...
28/09/2026

A walk, a chat and some very happy dogs! Frances and Rachel from the DCN community joined yesterday's Walk & Talk on Hampstead Heath with the lovely Alison Hall Nutritional Therapist who found the perfect route (ponds included, much to the dogs' delight).

The walk was one of many happening across the country yesterday afternoon, organised by Fertility Action and Don't Tell Me To RELAX Fertility Acupuncture. It was a lovely chance to bring people together to walk, talk and connect around fertility. Even though everyone's experience and perspective was different, there was a real sense of recognition and, in Frances’ words, “by the end of the afternoon it really felt like a connection had been made.”

Thank you to those who joined and to Alison, Don’t Tell Me to Relax and Fertility Action for pulling it all together. We're really looking forward to the next one in March 2027! ♥️

If you’ve used donor conception or fertility treatment to build your family, the wants to hear from you. Recruitment fo...
28/09/2026

If you’ve used donor conception or fertility treatment to build your family, the wants to hear from you.

Recruitment for the HFEA’s Patient Engagement Forum (PEF) is now open. As a PEF member, you’ll get the opportunity to share your views and experiences on certain fertility-related topics.

PEF members have participated in a variety of activities including:
✅ Snap polls and surveys
✅ Blogging for HFEA website
✅ Testing surveys and consultations
✅ Reviewing new website content before publication

They want to ensure that all views and experiences of fertility patients in the UK are reflected and are particularly interested in hearing from people from Black, Asian and ethnic minority backgrounds; LGBTQIA+ backgrounds; and those living outside of London.
Find more and fill in the application at https://www.hfea.gov.uk/about-us/working-with-others/patient-engagement-forum/

The laws and regulations around assisted reproduction, including the use of donors, don’t exist in isolation - they affe...
23/09/2026

The laws and regulations around assisted reproduction, including the use of donors, don’t exist in isolation - they affect real people, including the children and families created this way.

This afternoon, DCN’s Frances Sinclair will be representing our charity at the American Bar Association Fall Conference in London, speaking alongside legal, clinical and academic experts as part of a panel exploring the regulation and governance of the global fertility industry, with a specific focus on the use of IVF and donor conception in an international context.

With the use of s***m and egg donation increasingly crossing borders, the legal and ethical questions surrounding their use are becoming ever more complex and confusing for patients, donors and the families that result, and how they navigate through what can be a legal minefield with lifelong implications.

For DCN, it’s crucial that the real life experiences, challenges and perspectives of the people living with the implications and repercussions of the law (often years after their families were created) are part of these wider conversations about the future of reproductive medicine, law and regulation. For us, that means providing insights into what the law can mean for the people feeling its impact at different points over their lifetimes, and we’re delighted to have this opportunity to contribute to the discussion.

Our new booklet, Later Telling, is now available as a Kindle edition, making this specialist resource even easier to acc...
22/09/2026

Our new booklet, Later Telling, is now available as a Kindle edition, making this specialist resource even easier to access.

For nearly 20 years, we’ve been offering a bespoke service for parents of older or adult donor conceived children. We’ve now captured some of our key learnings in Later Telling, outlining the development of this service and exploring the common fears parents have, how we help them prepare, and some of the questions, concerns and experiences we’ve encountered time and again.

Later Telling is ideal for counsellors, psychologists, fertility professionals and anyone working with donor conception families. For parents considering telling their adult children, it’s also a helpful companion to our Telling and Talking 17+ booklet.

The Kindle edition is currently £5.59 on Amazon https://amzn.eu/d/0gLNZadJ

The paper edition (£12) and PDF edition (£8) are also available from the DCN Bookshop https://dcnetwork.org/product/later-telling/

This weekend - Fertility Walk & Talk 🧡DCN is delighted to be joining a national Fertility Walk & Talk, with walks takin...
21/09/2026

This weekend - Fertility Walk & Talk 🧡

DCN is delighted to be joining a national Fertility Walk & Talk, with walks taking place across the UK this Sunday, 27 September.

Organised by Katie Rollings of Fertility Action and Hannah Pearn of Don't Tell Me To RELAX Fertility Acupuncture, the walks bring together people and organisations from across the fertility sector to create informal opportunities for people to meet others who are on their own fertility journey.

The walks are open to everyone, whether you are trying to conceive, having fertility treatment, experiencing secondary infertility, facing loss, or considering what comes next.

There is no expectation to talk about your experiences or share your story. You can simply come along, meet others and take part in the walk at your own pace.

The DCN team will be at the Hampstead Heath walk, with our Trustee Rachel and Frances from the office team joining the walk on behalf of Donor Conception Network.

📍 Hampstead Heath
📅 Sunday 27 September
🕒 3–4pm
📌 Meet at Redemption Roasters café on the Heath

There are walks taking place in locations across the UK - and one in the Netherlands! - , so if Hampstead Heath isn't near you, you can find your nearest walk and sign up via the link below.

👉 https://www.eventbrite.com/cc/fertility-walk-and-talk-4871843/

Are you in contact with the donor, donor siblings, or other ‘donation connections’?If so, sociologist Petra Nordqvist wo...
17/09/2026

Are you in contact with the donor, donor siblings, or other ‘donation connections’?

If so, sociologist Petra Nordqvist would be delighted if you would consider taking part in her new study about what is like to be in contact with one’s donation connections, and how such relationship might change over time.

Petra has been researching the impact of donor conception on personal life for many years, including the experiences of parents and grandparents of donor conceived children, donors, and, most recently, the impact of online DNA testing on people impacted by donor conception. She is also a parent of two donor conceived children, conceived via a known donor.

If you think you might be interested, Petra is looking to interview individuals who are in contact with people they connect with via egg, s***m or embryo donation, either as donors, donor conceived persons, parents of donor conceived children or such person’s kin. Donation connections can be known from birth, or discovered later in life (e.g. through online DNA testing).

The interview will take around an hour of your time (but may take longer if you feel you have a lot to say). Interviews are usually one-to-one but if you prefer to be interviewed together with one or more other people who share in your experience (for example a family member) that is also an option. Interviews can be online or face to face, depending on what is more convenient for you. Participation is completely voluntary, anonymous and confidential.

Participation is open to young people aged 16 and above. If you think your child might be interested in taking part, you are encouraged to consider their maturity and readiness to talk about donor conception and contact before passing this information on to them. If you would like to discuss what participation would involve before talking to your child, Petra would warmly welcome you to get in touch.

For more information about the project and participation, please contact Petra on [email protected]

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