The BBC has this week reported that fourteen NHS trusts are to have their maternity services examined over what has been described as “failures in the system”.
Rapid review
The inquiries will be part of a rapid review of maternity care in England, which was announced by the Government in June.
The review will be chaired by Baroness Amos, who said she was committed to ensuring the families affected by maternity care failures were heard and that the investigations would lead to improvements nationwide.
The NHS trusts that will be examined are:
- Blackpool Teaching Hospitals
- Bradford Teaching Hospitals
- University Hospitals of Leicester
- Leeds Teaching Hospitals
- Sandwell and West Birmingham
- Gloucestershire Hospitals
- Yeovil District Hospital
- Oxford University Hospital
- University Hospitals Sussex
- Barking, Havering and Redbridge University Hospitals
- Queen Elizabeth, Kings Lynn
- University Hospitals of Morecambe Bay
- East Kent Hospitals
- Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital
The Department of Health said that the above trusts had been chosen for the review based on data analysis, the views of families, and to ensure a geographical and demographic mix.
Avoidable deaths
Research by baby loss charities, Sands and Tommy’s, has shown that improved maternity care may have prevented the deaths of over 800 babies in 2022-2023.
It is such shocking findings that have added to the call for further investigation into the state of maternity services in the UK.
Lack of sustained improvements
This is not the first time trusts have been investigated over failings in maternity care.
Past inquiries have noted issues including poor leadership, a failure to learn from safety incidents, ignoring women’s concerns, and a toxic culture.
Despite these investigation findings and the previous recommendations for necessary improvements, families are still reporting substandard care in maternity services.
This latest review will examine the experience of families and staff within England’s struggling maternity services and investigate why the recommendations from previous maternity inquiries in Morecambe Bay, East Kent, and Shrewsbury and Telford, have not led to sustained improvements.
In particular, attention will be paid to examining why black and Asian families have noticeably poorer outcomes.
The Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists said that the review would need to rebuild a world-class maternity system. The college’s president said:
“Too many women and babies are not getting the safe, compassionate care they deserve, and the maternity workforce is on its knees, with staff leaving the profession.”
Concerns with the review
Despite the review being welcomed by many, it is not without scrutiny from those most impacted, particularly the decision to opt for a rapid review, rather than in-depth investigation.
The Maternity Safety Alliance (MSA) – a group of families harmed by poor maternity care in several NHS trusts across England, has been strongly critical of the review.
They said that Health Secretary, Wes Streeting, had “broken promises” over how the investigation would be run and what it would look at, and reported that they felt they had been “used”.
In particular, the group was critical of the decision not to investigate the role of NHS regulators, such as NHS Resolution and the Care Quality Commission.
A spokesperson for the group said:
“The review seems to have already decided that all the responsibility for these 800 deaths a year lies squarely with NHS trusts and the clinicians who work in them. That’s just not true – the whole system is in crisis, and we need a whole system approach.”
Ongoing challenges highlighted by recent findings
Sadly, the concerns and challenges facing maternity services was further highlighted recently.
Last week, a review of care at Gloucestershire Hospitals NHS trust found that the deaths of nine babies between 2020 and 2023 could have been prevented.
During the same week, a report found that NHS trusts rated over half their maternity and neonatal buildings as being unsatisfactory, with 7% saying they ran a serious risk of imminent breakdown.
Comment
The announcement of a rapid review into maternity services across 14 NHS trusts is yet another stark reminder of the deep-rooted and persistent failings in England’s maternity care system.
This development reinforces what many families have long known: that poor outcomes in maternity care are not isolated incidents, but symptoms of a wider systemic crisis.
The courage of bereaved families who have come forward is commendable. Their testimonies have been instrumental in exposing patterns of unsafe care, ignored warnings, and a culture that too often silences women’s voices.
Yet, the decision to opt for a rapid review rather than a full statutory public inquiry has rightly drawn criticism. Families deserve more than a symbolic gesture—they deserve truth, accountability, and meaningful change.
The fact that previous inquiries, including those at Morecambe Bay, East Kent, and Shrewsbury and Telford, have led to hundreds of recommendations without sustained improvement is deeply troubling. It raises serious questions about the effectiveness of NHS oversight, the role of regulators, and the mechanisms in place to ensure that lessons are actually learned.
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Danielle Young is a Partner in our Medical Negligence team, which has been ranked in tier one by the independently researched publication, The Legal 500. She specialises in pregnancy and birth injury claims (including cerebral palsy), brain injury claims, fatal claims, surgical error claims, and cauda equina injury claims.
If you have any questions in relation to the subjects discussed in this article, then please get in touch with Danielle or another member of the team in Derby, Leicester, or Nottingham on 0800 024 1976 or via our online form.
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