Losing mum stopped me having kids

From tests that predict your fertility window to coaches promising to mentor you through the mother of all decisions, the market for hand-holding women through the parenthood question is no longer in its infancy. Faced with a life-changing call, WH asks if the business of offspring evaluation is long overdue – or capitalising on women’s body clocks?

At 38, Victoria Mapplebeck found herself single, pregnant and broke. Unable to combine motherhood with her job as a freelance film director, she walked away from her career and turned the camera on herself. Her documentary, Motherboard , is an unvarnished portrait of single motherhood. Here, she tells her story

As an increasing number of women decide to have a baby solo, Lisa Oxenham says it’s time to talk more openly about what makes up modern families

‘In memory of Alison, I want to help others’

Helen Murray Taylor shares how a mental health breakdown led to her being sectioned

Whether by choice or not, singledom in midlife is on the rise. We explore the many pleasures – and occasional pitfalls – of going solo