NHS maternity services in England are failing women and babies “on a scale that shames our society”, according to a damning independent review that found racism and discrimination “embedded throughout the system”.
The rapid review by Baroness Valerie Amos, ordered by then health secretary Wes Streeting last summer, painted what Health Secretary James Murray called a “bleak picture” of failings spanning pregnancy, childbirth and postnatal care. Too many women, the report said, were not being “listened to, heard or believed”.
“Damning review finds racism and discrimination embedded in NHS maternity care; government pledges 1,000 new midwives and standards.”
Speaking in the House of Commons, Murray promised a radical overhaul, announcing new national standards for emergency maternity care to be published this week, alongside plans to create 1,000 temporary midwifery posts this year. An extra £41m will be made available to upgrade “rundown” maternity and neonatal facilities.
But another of the report’s key recommendations – the creation of a national maternity commissioner to oversee improvements – was met with fierce criticism from some families. Emily Barley, whose daughter Beatrice died at Barnsley hospital in 2022, told the BBC the idea was “fundamentally dangerous” and placed too much power in the hands of one person.
The Birth Trauma Association described the report as a “huge missed opportunity”, saying the views of staff had been given too much weight compared with the experiences of patients. “It is devastating to see that so little of what women told Baroness Amos is reflected,” said chief executive Dr Kim Thomas. She highlighted that injuries caused by forceps deliveries and the impact of post-traumatic stress on women and their partners were not mentioned.
Murray acknowledged a “culture of coverup” in maternity services, telling MPs that “too often families have been sneered at, disbelieved, blamed and lied to”. He added: “We know from review after review that wrongdoing is being covered up and that bullying towards staff who try to sound the alarm is rife.”
Despite the urgency of the report, Murray was unable to confirm a timeline for appointing the maternity commissioner, telling BBC Breakfast his team would “move as quickly as we can”. Maternity investigator Donna Ockenden, who led a recent investigation into failings in Nottingham, said she was “not really convinced that one person can take on the system. I think it needs now something bigger than that.” Ockenden, who has also been appointed to chair upcoming reviews into Leeds and Sussex services, added: “I wouldn’t be prepared to take on a job and do it half-baked or badly.”