England launches national maternity investigation targeting 14 NHS trusts amid concerns of a 'toxic' cover-up culture

The Department of Health and Social Care has launched a rapid national investigation into maternity services at 14 NHS trusts after a series of independent reviews found repeated failings that campaigners and officials say point to a wider, systemic problem.

Health Secretary Wes Streeting announced the probe on Monday, saying it responds to a pattern of avoidable harm and a "toxic cover-up culture" that has left many bereaved families struggling to get answers. "I know that NHS maternity and neonatal workers want the best for these mothers and babies, and that the vast majority of births are safe and without incident, but I cannot turn a blind eye to failures in the system," Streeting said. "Every single preventable tragedy is one too many."

The review will be led by Baroness Valerie Amos and is to be co‑produced with families affected by maternity scandals, the DHSC said. Baroness Amos said she will "carry the weight of the loss suffered by families with me throughout this investigation" and hoped the review would provide answers for families and support the NHS in identifying areas requiring urgent reform. The review is expected to report in December.

The trusts named for immediate examination are Barking, Havering and Redbridge University Hospitals; Blackpool Teaching Hospitals; Bradford Teaching Hospitals; East Kent Hospitals; Gloucestershire Hospitals; Leeds Teaching Hospitals; Oxford University Hospitals; Sandwell and West Birmingham Hospitals; Shrewsbury and Telford Hospitals; The Queen Elizabeth Hospital, King's Lynn; University Hospitals of Leicester; University Hospitals of Morecambe Bay; University Hospitals Sussex; and Yeovil District Hospital/Somerset NHS Foundation Trust.

The investigation follows high‑profile inquiries that uncovered serious care failures. An investigation into Shrewsbury and Telford hospitals found in March 2022 that neglect and poor care contributed to the deaths of more than 200 babies and nine mothers, and an independent review at East Kent Hospitals concluded that the deaths of 45 babies could have been avoided with proper treatment. Multiple reviews identified common themes, including women's concerns being ignored, safety issues being overlooked and poor leadership fostering a culture in which problems go unaddressed.

Charles Massey, chief executive of the General Medical Council, has warned that a "toxic" culture of cover‑up is putting mothers and babies at risk because trainee doctors and other staff often feel fearful about speaking up. Speaking at a patient safety congress, Massey said, "That doctors are making life and death decisions in environments where they feel fearful to speak up is profoundly concerning," and cautioned that such environments can lead to "cover‑up over candour and obfuscation over honesty."

Streeting said the review will look urgently across the entire maternity system, including individual cases from trusts in Leeds and Sussex, and that harmed and bereaved families would be placed "at the heart" of the work to ensure the inquiry hears directly from those affected. He added that families seeking the truth had often been "gaslit" in their interactions with the health service.

Health officials said the rapid examination will assess governance, leadership, safety systems, the handling of patient concerns and the escalation of clinical risks, with the aim of identifying immediate remedial actions as well as longer‑term reforms. The review will draw on the findings of existing independent investigations and is intended to determine whether there are common failures requiring system‑wide remedies.

The announcement comes amid mounting scrutiny of maternity services in recent years and growing calls from campaigners, clinicians and regulators for stronger mechanisms to detect and correct unsafe practice. Regulators and trusts have previously introduced safety initiatives and external reviews in response to individual scandals; ministers said the new investigation seeks to examine whether those measures have been sufficient and to recommend further reforms where necessary.

The DHSC did not detail a public timetable beyond the expected December conclusion, but said the investigation would proceed at pace and that any immediate safety concerns identified would be acted on without delay. Trusts included in the review have been asked to cooperate fully and to provide requested information to support the inquiry.