But in reality meeting all these criteria is only guaranteed through a home birth because women have much more control within their own property.

If resources are stretched in hospital, in the worse case one midwife could be attending up to three women in labour, the birthing pool may be taken up by another woman and at night after the birth your partner has to go home.

The NHS advocates choice but this only exists within restrictive boundaries.

Northampton General Hospital senior midwife Paula Briody has worked in the hospital and community for many years.

Having seen the service from both sides she believes home births empower mothers-to-be and they get the dedicated, personal care sometimes lacking in a busy hospital.

She said there was no greater risk with giving birth in hospital or at home and women with a normal pregnancy should always be given the choice.

Northampton has a much higher than average home birth rate, more than six per cent, compared to the national average of around two per cent, something which Paula believes is down to Northampton midwives strongly promoting choice for women.

She added: "I think word of mouth has also meant more women having home births as their friends and family have done it and it has been a positive experience."

When a mother has decided to have a home birth they will be visited by a midwife once at home and have the risks of the birth (whether at home or hospital), preparations and procedures explained to them.

When the day comes the mother has to contact a community midwife who will come to their home to check them.

If it is the early stage of labour and the woman is happy the midwife will leave and come back later once things have advanced.

They will then stay with the mother until the birth and a second midwife is present for the delivery.

Sometimes there is also a student with the first midwife so the mother can have two or three people with her for the birth.

Amanda Mantle from Wootton, who is due on February 22, is having her first home birth, following two births in hospital on the Isle of Wight.

She said: "I did think about it (a home birth) the second time but was too far away from hospital if anything did go wrong.

I think it will be so much easier at home. In hospital I got absolutely no sleep as other babies were crying all through the night.

Everybody says it (a home birth) takes your mind off it, it is a distraction, in hospital you are just thinking about it all the time."

Amanda, who has two children, Joe aged four and Gemma aged six, decided to go for a home birth after speaking to other mothers.

"I went to the meeting thinking something would put me off but there was nothing at all," she said.

While being visited by the community midwife at home Amanda asked if it was possible she could be transferred to hospital if there was a staff shortage.

Paula admitted that this did occasionally happen when community staff were called in to support the labour ward but a mother could refuse to go.

She added: "We have never had a situation where a lady said 'I won't come in' but if she did we would legally have to provide a midwife to come out to her."

Having a birth at home does not mean having to deal with the inevitable mess that comes with delivery.

The midwives will stay until a couple of hours after the birth and then take away any waste and leave the house as they found it.

The only thing the mother has to worry about is having a few disposable items to hand including plastic sheeting, old towels, flannels and a fridge full of nibbles for herself and the midwives.

Paula added: "Where a mother gives birth is up to them.

They will wander around the house.

Very few have babies in the bedroom.

It is normally the smallest room in the house or leaning on the banister at the top of the stairs."

It is also more affordable to buy a birthing pool as some inflatable products on the market can later be used as a padding pool.

Most mothers ask the community midwife what pain relief will be available at home as they will be unable to have an epidural.

Paula said: "Most women at home have very little pain relief as they are more distracted, they have music and the television.

But we do bring gas and air. We also bring emergency equipment in case needed."

The common apprehension about home births is 'what if something goes wrong?' But if the midwife is worried about the baby at any stage the mother will be transferred to hospital by ambulance accompanied by a midwife.

One of the main advantages of a home birth is that time is on a woman's side and there is no pressure to free up a bed for another delivering mother or to have a caesarean unnecessarily.

In the words of Margaret Mitchell, author of Gone with the Wind: "Death and taxes and childbirth! There's never any convenient time for any of them."

Most mammals give birth in familiar surroundings, nestled in their own territory where they feel safe and protected.

Yet the human species of the western world insists upon placing mothers in a clinical environment among dozens of strangers.

This accepted norm is the most unnatural way to give birth according to mother-of-three Becky Harris from Wootton, Northampton, who has had one hospital birth and two at home.

She believes being in her own environment was more relaxing and made the whole experience 'pleasurable'.

Her first child Jordan, now aged 11, was delivered at Northampton General Hospital, where she almost had a caesarean because staff felt labour was taking too long.

As it turned out another higher priority patient took her slot in theatre and Becky went on to have a completely natural birth.

During the whole experience she felt isolated, pressured to give birth quickly and had limited support from a midwife who could only pop in and out.

In fact when the midwife came to check on her the baby's head was already crowning.

"My waters broke at home and they kept me in hospital overnight with women and their newborn babies.

"I didn't get any sleep and the next morning I was exhausted.

"They gave me an epidural so I was immobile and I was waiting for someone to tell me what was happening to my body as I couldn't feel anything.

"I then had to spend two nights on the ward and my partner had to go home.

Our new life didn't start until two days later."

By the time she had her second child Abbie, now aged three, home birth was becoming more widespread and Becky had the support of her midwife.

"It was so much more peaceful.

I was able to move around freely, have a bath in a clean bath and not worry about someone knocking on the door.

There was no-one saying I had to move when the baby was born.

"My husband and I were left in bed with our new baby together.

It was a family experience.

"There are no time restrictions and it is empowering.

"With my third birth (Emilia, now aged two) I got the care from my midwife that I would have got if I had gone private and paid £7,000."

Although she does not deny there is a place for hospital in an emergency, given her first birth again, she would have it at home, as she believes it is the way forward.

Becky has been so keen to promote home birth that she set up a monthly meeting group in Wootton to educate other mothers-to-be and share her experiences.

They meet the first Monday of each month at 1.30pm at Trinity Church hall in Wootton High Street.