Mumsnet in May
See what Mumsnet has been up to in May - from brand partnerships delivering real impact to media coverage reaching millions.
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Mumsnet impact
Justine Roberts CBE on platforms, parents and the cost of inaction
Mumsnet founder Justine Roberts CBE wrote for the Independent this month on why comparisons between social media and the tobacco industry will ring true for many parents. Her argument is direct: platforms engineer dependency, deny responsibility, and leave families to manage the consequences through parental controls and “better conversations” against systems designed by some of the world’s most sophisticated behavioural engineers.
Mumsnet’s Rage Against The Screen campaign has helped move the issue from the margins into mainstream political debate. A smartphone ban for under-16s (once considered politically unrealistic) is now being actively discussed. Last week, Justine joined other campaigners in Downing Street to meet the Prime Minister as part of those discussions. The debate has shifted quickly, and Mumsnet has been part of
that shift.
As social platforms face growing regulatory scrutiny, the gap between algorithmic reach and trusted environments is becoming harder to ignore. Mumsnet offers something increasingly rare online: 25 years of anonymous, moderated conversation, with 25,000 organic posts every day from people speaking candidly. As demand grows for genuine human perspective, that kind of environment becomes harder to replicate.
Mumsnet partnerships
People don’t make snap decisions on
home energy
Families who have been considering solar panels and heat pumps are suddenly paying much closer attention. As temperatures rise and energy costs remain unpredictable, decisions that once felt optional are starting to feel more immediate and people are looking for information they can trust.
Octopus Energy built credibility on Mumsnet through an always-on partnership, showing up where homeowners were already researching complicated, expensive decisions.
The results reflected that long-term approach. Editorial content on solarand heat pumps delivered over 11,000 pageviews (103% of KPI), with dwell times around 1.5 minutes - comfortably above benchmark. The Mumsnet newsletter achieved a 37% open rate and 0.32% CTR (vs. 0.20% benchmark), while feed ads generated almost 5 million impressions.
Most importantly, the partnership drove a +12pp uplift in consideration for both solar panels and heat pumps, alongside a +5pp lift in positive sentiment.
Mumsnet across the political press
Campaign highlights this month
Mumsnet appeared across national political coverage throughout May. The Daily Express picked up our poll on how Mumsnetters feel about politics. The Standard featured comment and video in a piece about how London mums planned to vote.
The Times, The Spectator and the Daily Mail all referenced Mumsnet in stories about Andy Burnham's positioning and Labour leadership speculation.
None of these were Mumsnet-led stories. They were national political pieces that turned to Mumsnet as a read on public sentiment. For brands, that matters more than simple media coverage.
Fostering in focus:
Mumsnet's CFO Matt Smith and Children and Families Minister Josh MacAlister
This month's conversation between Mumsnet's Matt Smith and Children and Families Minister Josh MacAlister took a different format from a standard Mumsnet Asks.
Rather than being driven by user-submitted questions, the discussion drew on Matt's own personal experience with fostering, which gave it a more reflective quality. It also strengthened Mumsnet's relationship with DfE through a genuinely substantive conversation on a topic that matters to families.
Medical misogyny:
The campaign keeps building
Mumsnet’s medical misogyny campaign gained further reach in May, with influencers including women's health advocate Evelyn Scott, health journalist Penny Parkesand campaigner Laura Pottsall sharing original content about the campaign with their 166.5k combined followers across TikTok and Instagram bringing it to a new audience and adding their own credibility to the conversation. Trusted voices in the women's health space are not just noticing this campaign - they’re backing it.
