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Fertility treatments for lesbian and same-sex female couples and individuals

As a lesbian or same-sex female couple or individual, there are several possible paths to parenthood for you to explore.

Every family and fertility journey is unique. We’re here to help build yours in a way that's right for you.

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Your fertility options

Today, there are many ways to start a family and we’re here to help you find the path that's right for you.

Before you start treatment, a fertility assessment will help us to understand which options are best for you.

Here are the treatments we currently have for same-sex couples, partners and co-parents and individuals assigned female at birth.

Intrauterine insemination with donor sperm

If you or your partner or co-parent want to become pregnant and you don’t have any fertility challenges, you can consider intrauterine insemination (IUI).

IUI is when sperm from a donor is injected directly into the uterus, where it fertilises the eggs naturally.

This is also called artificial insemination. You can have IUI using sperm from a licensed donor bank or from someone you know.

We always recommend IUI at a licensed fertility clinic, instead of home insemination.

IVF for same-sex female couples

If you or your partner or co-parent want to become pregnant and you have fertility challenges, then IVF can increase your chances of a successful pregnancy.

During IVF, hormones are taken to stimulate egg growth to increase the chance of more eggs being collected. The eggs are then removed from the ovaries and fertilised with donated sperm in a lab.

A fertilised egg (embryo) is then placed back inside the womb to grow.

Depending on your fertility, you can use your eggs or donated eggs for IVF. You can also use sperm from a sperm bank or a known donor.

Reciprocal IVF

Reciprocal IVF is also called ROPA, or shared motherhood/parenthood.

It enables two female partners or co-parents to have a biological connection to their child by sharing the IVF process.

In reciprocal IVF, the eggs from one partner are retrieved and fertilised, before being placed in the womb of the other partner, who carries the pregnancy.

Reciprocal IVF can use sperm from a known person or a sperm donor.

We’ve helped many partners become parents through reciprocal IVF.

Finding a sperm donor

If you’re looking for a sperm donor for IUI or IVF treatment, we can help you find the right match, either through our own sperm bank or from other trusted sources in the UK or abroad.

To help you choose your ideal donor, we'll give you as much information about them as possible.

We make sure any potential donor has all the appropriate tests for infections, diseases, and genetic conditions.

You can also use a known donor. This is when someone you already know donates their sperm. This could be a friend or a family member who isn’t related to the person whose eggs you’ll use.