Mothers' Union has been serving families and communities for 150 years — and this month, BBC One's Songs of Praise brought that story to a national audience.

The programme, broadcast in March 2026, featured Mothers' Union members in Liverpool to mark the organisation's 150th anniversary. It showcased two of the many ways in which MU members quietly and consistently make a difference: creating handmade cards for prisoners, and running parenting courses to help families maintain bonds during periods of imprisonment.

The cards project is a small but profound act of solidarity. Prisoners often feel forgotten — cut off from family, from community, from any sense that they still matter. A handmade card, made by a stranger who has taken time and care, can be a powerful reminder that they have not been written off. MU members in Liverpool have been making and sending these cards for years, asking nothing in return.

The parenting courses address one of the most painful consequences of imprisonment: the disruption to family relationships, and particularly to the bond between parents and children. The courses help parents in prison maintain and strengthen those relationships, and support families on the outside to navigate an incredibly difficult time.

Mothers' Union was founded in 1876 by Mary Sumner, who wanted to support mothers in raising their children in the Christian faith. Today it has nearly four million members in 83 countries, working on issues from literacy to domestic violence to disaster relief. But its heart remains the same: the belief that strong families are the foundation of healthy communities, and that every family deserves support.

'We are so proud of our 150 years of service,' said a Mothers' Union spokesperson. 'But we are even more excited about the next 150. The needs of families have changed, but the call to serve them has not.'