Fourteen NHS trusts to be examined in rapid review of maternity care

The government has ordered investigations into maternity services at 14 NHS trusts as part of a rapid review of maternity care in England, saying the probes are needed to understand "failures in the system" and to learn lessons from incidents dating back more than a decade.

Health Secretary Wes Streeting said bereaved families had shown "extraordinary courage" in coming forward with accounts of poor care going back more than 15 years, and that the review aims to examine both the experience of families and staff and why recommendations from previous inquiries have not produced sustained improvement.

Baroness Amos, who will chair the review, said she was committed to ensuring "the lived experience of affected families are fully heard" and that the focused investigations would help her "develop recommendations... that will drive improvements across maternity and neonatal services nationwide." The trusts to 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 Hospitals, University Hospitals Sussex, Barking, Havering and Redbridge University Hospitals, Queen Elizabeth, King’s Lynn, University Hospitals of Morecambe Bay, East Kent Hospitals, and Shrewsbury and Telford Hospitals.

The review, which was announced in June as a faster alternative to the statutory public inquiry many bereaved families have demanded, was originally due to report in December but will now publish its final findings in spring 2026. Baroness Amos said she would aim to produce interim findings around Christmas. The Department of Health said trusts were selected based on data analysis, the views of families, and to ensure a geographical and demographic mix.

The rapid review will take a particular interest in why black and Asian families have noticeably poorer maternity outcomes, and it will scrutinise why lessons from high-profile inquiries into Morecambe Bay, East Kent and Shrewsbury and Telford have not led to lasting change. Past investigations identified problems including ignored concerns raised by women, inadequate leadership, failures to learn from safety incidents and a toxic culture; advocates and families say similar failings persist.

Campaigners and family groups have offered mixed responses. The Maternity Safety Alliance (MSA), a coalition of families harmed by poor care, has been among the most vocal critics, saying the review has "broken promises" over its remit and will not probe the role of NHS regulators such as the Care Quality Commission and NHS Resolution. Tom Hender, who lost his son in 2022, said the review appeared to place responsibility solely on trusts and clinicians and warned that a "whole system" approach was needed.

Some campaigning families who secured a public inquiry into care at Shrewsbury and Telford described the review as "an important and brave first step," but urged a slower pace and proper mental health support for those sharing traumatic experiences. They said nominal support figures and an email address would not be sufficient for participants.

Medical bodies urged caution about the review’s impact while acknowledging the need for action. The Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists said focusing scrutiny on a small number of trusts would "create real anxiety among women, families and staff" and stressed that the maternity workforce was under severe strain. "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," said the college’s president, Professor Ranee Thakar.

Research by the baby-loss charities Sands and Tommy’s has suggested that improved maternity care might have prevented the deaths of more than 800 babies in 2022–23. Recent local reviews have underlined continuing risks: a review at Gloucestershire Hospitals found that nine babies who died between 2020 and 2023 could have been saved, and a separate report found more than half of NHS trusts rated at least some of their maternity and neonatal buildings as unsatisfactory, with 7% warning of a serious risk of imminent breakdown.

The wider NHS culture and accountability mechanisms are also in focus. Charles Massey, chief executive of the General Medical Council, is expected to say at a conference that a "toxic" culture of cover-up is contributing to poor maternity outcomes and that patient safety has suffered as a result.

Families and campaigners continue to press for a statutory public inquiry, arguing it is the only route to a system-wide examination of accountability, regulation and long-term failures. The government and Baroness Amos say the rapid review, together with the focused trust investigations and planned interim and final reports, will identify practical recommendations to improve care and prevent further avoidable deaths.