Calm Womb Calm World — a therapeutic program for young mothers and pregnant women in Western Australia.
The most important chapter in a child’s life begins earlier than most people realise.
THE PROJECT
Young mothers are often the hardest to reach with the support they need, and the easiest to miss. Calm Womb Calm World goes to them — meeting them where they already are, during pregnancy and early parenting, the window when support has the greatest long-term impact for both mother and child.
What becomes possible
Young mothers arrive at this program having rarely — if ever — experienced consistent, trustworthy support. What shifts over time is not just measurable in data. It is visible in the small but profound moments: a young mother who arrived guarded and closed, initiating her own session. Reaching out after something difficult happened at home. Beginning to understand her own responses — and finding words for them. Forming friendships with other mothers who understand.
For their children, a mother who feels safer, more connected, and more supported is a different presence in her child’s life. And that difference shapes everything that follows.
mothers in Australia experiences a perinatal mental health condition
AIHW, 2023
higher risk for young mothers under 20
AIHW, 2023
"The earlier a mother is supported, the greater the impact — for her, her child, and every generation that follows."
A window that changes everything
Project Governance and Funding
During pregnancy and through early parenting, a mother’s stress, trauma, and capacity for connection directly shape her child’s developing brain — the regions governing emotional regulation, learning, relationships, and resilience.
(Van den Bergh et al., 2005; Coussons-Read, 2013; Reissland et al., 2018).
When a mother carries unresolved trauma or chronic stress, her child’s nervous system adapts to it. Attachment patterns form. Without support, they pass to the next generation.
(Iyengar et al., 2014; Schwerdtfeger & Goff, 2007).
This is where Calm Womb Calm World works.
P.D.L.E. Inc. Trading as A.T.U.L. (Aid to Useful Living) (PDLE) is a Western Australian not-for-profit organisation with more than sixty years of community service. Its charitable purpose is to advance mental health by supporting programs that improve psychological wellbeing, prevent mental illness where possible, and strengthen resilience within individuals, families and communities.
PDLE is registered with the Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission (ACNC) as a charity and is endorsed by the Australian Taxation Office (ATO) as a Public Benevolent Institution (PBI) and Deductible Gift Recipient (DGR). This enables donors to claim tax deductions for eligible donations while providing funders with the assurance that the organisation meets Australia's charitable governance and tax endorsement requirements.
THE APPROACH
Where you are is where we start
Rooted in science
Alive in relationship
Drawing on attachment theory, somatic psychotherapy, neuroscience, and prenatal bonding research. At its centre is the relationship between mother and child — one of the most powerful determinants of a child's lifelong wellbeing. Social connection equally matters: support and belonging during this window is one of the strongest protective factors for both mother and baby.
Calm Womb Calm World comes to mothers — embedded within the environments they already attend, removing the barriers of transport, cost, and childcare. No unfamiliar building. No stranger across a desk.
Starting from strength
Growing into connection
Every mother arrives with something — even if it isn't yet visible to her. This work is about finding it: supporting her sense of self, her connection to her child, and her place within a community of women who understand. From that foundation, something begins to grow — for her, for her child, and for the generation that follows.
Support is offered through both individual sessions and therapeutic group work — each reinforcing the other.
PROGRAMS
Where the work happens
Young Parent Centre
Port School, Western Australia
✓ Individual therapy ✓ Group sessions ✓ Mother + baby
A trauma-aware alternative education setting where young mothers and their babies are supported to continue their education. Therapeutic presence is embedded directly within this environment.
Individual sessions and therapeutic group work run alongside each other throughout school terms. Babies and children are not peripheral to the work — nurturing the bond between mother and child is at the heart of every session.
Pilot launched january 2026.
Pregnancy Program
In development
Reaching mothers at the very beginning — during pregnancy, when the impact of early support is at its greatest. Already taking shape in practice, with pregnant young mothers currently being supported within the existing program.
From early pregnancy through birth and into early parenting — offering therapeutic presence, prenatal bonding support, and community connection. Touching two generations before the second has even arrived.
We are seeking host sites and funding partnerships to bring this program to more mothers. If you are interested in being part of its development, we would love to hear from you.
Two quarters in
50%
increase in young
mothers engaged
67%
increase in babies
and children supported
400%
growth in
new participants
85%
average attendance
85% average attendance — exceptional for a cohort facing poverty, trauma, and
significant systemic barriers
This works. It could reach so many more.
These results come from a single pilot site in its first two quarters. The model is proven. The need is significant. Thousands of young mothers across Western Australia are navigating pregnancy and early parenting in this window right now — and with the right support at the right time, outcomes for them and their children could look entirely different.
GET INVOLVED
The foundation is laid.
The next chapter needs the right partners.
Calm Womb Calm World is a proven, evidence-based model at an early and pivotal stage of growth. Investment and partnership now extend its reach — to more host sites, more young mothers, and a pregnancy program that intervenes before birth.
FUNDERS AND PHILANTHROPIC PARTNERS
We welcome conversations with funders committed to early intervention and lasting generational change. P.D.L.E. Inc. holds Public Benevolent Institution (PBI) status. P.D.L.E. Inc. DGR status has been approve by the ACNC and is progress with the ATO.
HOST SITES AND COLLABORATIONS
The model is designed to be embedded within environments where young mothers already are. We are actively seeking host organisations for both the current program and the pregnancy program in development, and welcome collaboration with researchers and practitioners who share our commitment to maternal and infant wellbeing.
REFERRALS & PROFESSIONAL ENQUIRIES
Supporting young mothers or pregnant women? Get in touch to learn more about the project or how to refer.
If you are would like to know more about the project or how to refer, please get in touch.