In 1977 a French obstetrician Michel Odent introduced mothers to a pool of warm water so that they could relax in labour and not feel inhibited, this also helped for pain relief. Some women decided to stay in the pool to give birth, and over the next 5-6 years thousands of women used the pool during labour.

By 1983 hundreds of women had given birth in water. In the 1980s waterbirth had spread across the world from France to America. By 1987 approx. 3,000 babies had been born underwater. At the garden hospital in London, Dr. Yehudi Gordon stopped giving pethidine to women in labour, warm water has taken its place.

Many private hospitals, N.H.S. hospitals and midwifery units have their own pools, some have pools on a long term hire basis and mothers also hire pools to take into hospital or for home births.