Maternity services to be investigated in 14 NHS Trusts

The inquiries form part of the national rapid review of maternity services in England announced by the Health Secretary in June, during which he specifically named University Hospitals Sussex as the first Trust to be subject to investigation, following a campaign from bereaved families over the deaths of nine babies.

However, since that was announced, no progress has been made, despite the efforts of the families.

Katie Fowler and Robert Miller, whose daughter Abigail died at the Royal Sussex County Hospital due to maternity failings, and are part of the group of Sussex families, expressed their concerns over what the latest announcement would actually deliver.

"Unfortunately we do not have confidence in this national investigation. Over the summer we, alongside numerous other families, have supplied pages of feedback about the terms of reference that largely seems to have been ignored,” they said.

“We are particularly concerned that maternity regulators such as the CQC will not make up part of the investigation despite them playing a huge part in the normalisation of harm.

“While we welcome any scrutiny of University Hospitals Sussex's maternity services, we have said from the beginning that only an independent review led by Donna Ockenden can give us the thorough account of what happened to Abigail and other babies that the Health Secretary says we deserve. Despite this, we still do not know when this promised review will start, or who will lead it.”

The 14 NHS Trusts that will be investigated 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 Health Secretary announced the rapid review earlier this year, despite many families calling for a national inquiry into maternity care.

Past inquiries have revealed a host of failings including ignoring women's concerns, poor leadership, a failure to learn from safety incidents and a toxic staff culture. Yet families are still repeatedly reporting substandard care.

Nisha Sharma, principal lawyer at Slater and Gordon, acts for families nationally who have experienced poor standards of maternity care.

"While it is of course welcome that failings in maternity care are to be investigated, we remain concerned at exactly what this will achieve,” she said.

“We have had maternity inquiries previously in Morecambe Bay, East Kent, and Shrewsbury and Telford, but this has not led to the systemic improvements we know are needed. The major problems in maternity care are not new and are well known - but nothing is being done, and the urgent action to protect mothers and babies that is so desperately needed is not being taken.

"Families who have suffered such trauma and loss continue to feel unheard and overlooked, and they themselves have huge concerns with the promises they have been made about the change that will be delivered. This is not good enough, and only through this investigation delivering real results and effecting change can the Government hope to win back their trust."