I can’t believe it’s already that time of year! World Childless Week is almost upon us. It’s a collaborative event that happens every September, and it’s a time when members of the childless community from all over the world come together for a week of sharing, solidarity and encouragement. We share stories, thought pieces, poems, songs, paintings, photos, artistic installations, interviews—we even meet up for live online webinars!

We also take time during the Week to declare who we are as childless people, finding strength and hope for the future arising from our shared grief of childlessness.

It’s a powerful time of year. I have personally taken part in quite a few Weeks, as it’s a unique opportunity to connect with others who just ‘get it.’ In World Childless Week, there’s no need to explain ourselves (although we can if we want); it’s a safe space to express whatever we are feeling, in whatever form we wish. It’s very cool.

In previous years, I have written my childless story and shared it with the global community. I have also written articles, shared a song, and participated in two webinars. It’s such a thrill to chat live with people from the UK and other parts of the world!

Perhaps you are thinking of sharing your story or artistic piece this year, but you’re not sure where to start. A good way to begin is look at this years’ topics and see what they prompt for you. There are usually seven topics each year, one for every day of the Week. This year there are eight topics, and they are:

– Mon 14th Sept: Our Stories. This is a chance to share your unique lived experience of childlessness, and you can be as raw, vulnerable, and brutally honest as you want.

– Tues 15th Sept: Childless: Disability and Chronic Illness. There’s an intersection for many childless people between their illness or disability and childlessness. Feel free to speak about the complexity of being sick and childless at the same time, and how people may have judged, assumed or stigmatised something about you for it.

– Wed 16th Sept: 10 Things You Should Know About Me. World Childless Week is turning ten years old in 2026! As a tribute, you can share ten things the world should know about you and your childless journey.

– Thur 17th Sept: Childless Mother’s/Father’s Day. Many childless people find these ‘special occasions’ challenging, and not just because of childlessness either. Yet some take these Days as opportunities to celebrate being a furparent too.

– Fri 18th Sept: Why Do You Want Time Off? You Haven’t Got Kids. Have you ever been told this? Share your story about how such thoughtless and insensitive remarks have rubbed salt into the childless wound.

– Sat 19th Sept: We Are Worthy. A staple of World Childless Week, Saturday is an opportunity to celebrate the ways in which childless people are worthy and capable of living full, rich and happy lives.

– Sat 19th Sept: Family Tree. This is a new topic, set to be an ongoing integral part of World Childless Week. A big part of the grief of childlessness can be our family tree stopping with us; so the Family Tree is an opportunity to share the names of the children we never had with the rest of the childless community, thereby creating a collaborative family tree.

– Sun 20th Sept: Moving Forwards. Another staple of World Childless Week, this is your chance to share how you are reinventing or rediscovering yourself as a childless person, how your grief has shifted over time, and how you are giving shape to your future life.

Do any of these topics stand out to you? Personally, I’m planning to write something along the lines of the Chronic Illness topic (as I consider myself childless by medical condition) and the Mother’s Day topic as I struggle with this, particularly in the context of Mother’s Day celebrations at church.

If you would care to join me, then get creating! Submissions close 16th August 2026 and can be made here: https://worldchildlessweek.net/submission-fact-sheet

For more information about the topics for World Childless Week 2026 and to browse past years’ submissions, peruse here: https://worldchildlessweek.net/past-events

I hope to see you there!

Care to share your story for World Childless Week? Is there part of your childlessness story that you’d like to get off your chest? Perhaps there is a topic that really resonates with you? Share your story. Let’s have a countercultural conversation.

Steph Penny's Writing

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