Wes Streeting Health Secretary has announced today that he is launching a rapid inquiry into NHS maternity care and neonatal services in England.
The announcement follows meetings last week with families from across England who form part of the Maternity Safety Alliance, a group set up by bereaved parents and maternity campaigners who urged Mr Streeting to launch a national inquiry.
Scope of the Maternity Investigation
Mr Streeting has this morning announced that the maternity investigation will urgently examine up to 10 of the most concerning maternity and neonatal units, including The Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust, University Hospitals Sussex NHS Foundation Trust, Gloucestershire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust and Mid and South Essex NHS Foundation Trust, with the aim of giving affected families answers as quickly as possible.
The second part of the maternity investigation will look at maternity and neonatal services nationally, bringing together lessons from past inquiries including University Hospitals of Morecambe Bay NHS Foundation Trust, Shrewsbury and Telford NHS Foundation Trust and East Kent Hospitals NHS Trust to create a national set of actions to improve NHS maternity care across all services.
Mr Streeting has also announced that the government is immediately establishing a National Maternity and Neonatal Taskforce with particular focus on inequalities faced by women from Black, Asian and deprived backgrounds, as well as holding failing NHS Trusts to account.
The investigation will begin this summer and is due to report back by December 2025.
Families Seeking Accountability in NHS Maternity Care
CL Medilaw represents hundreds of families across the country affected by poor NHS maternity care. Robyn and Jonny Davis, whose baby, Orlando, died at Worthing Hospital, West Sussex, comment:
“We are incredibly grateful to Wes Streeting for taking the time to listen to us and granting an independent review into nine preventable deaths at UH Sussex between 2021–2023 including a review into our precious baby Orlando’s death and the near loss of my life too. We feel and hope that we can understand in greater depth what went wrong and highlight our concerns within the care we received. We hope this will help University Hospitals Sussex to recognise and publicly take responsibility for the consequences of providing dangerously unsafe maternity care…”
"Our Voices are Finally Being Heard..."
Chloe and Toby Vowels Lovett, whose daughter died at Worthing Hospital, West Sussex comment:
“The biggest relief is that our voices are finally being heard and we appreciate the opportunity to have our cases reviewed. An acknowledgement that every baby whose life was unfairly cut short should be owed. It’s clear that there are serious systemic issues within the trust that need to be properly investigated and we hope in Esme’s honour we can contribute to meaningful change.”
Legal Perspective on the National Maternity Investigation
Charlotte Moore, maternity and birth injury lawyer, comments:
“It is overdue and welcome news that a National Maternity Investigation has been launched by the government. We represent families across the country who have received poor maternity and neonatal care, leading to long-term harm or loss. It is important that the worst services across the country are targeted but from our experience this is a national issue, which the government has now recognised…”
Charity Partners Supporting Affected Families
CL Medilaw works closely with numerous charities and organisations across the country that support families affected by poor NHS maternity care.
Sarah Land, founder of Peeps HIE, comments:
“We welcome the news of the National Maternity Investigation and know that this is something families and supporting organisations have campaigned for for a long time. It is vital that families are heard—both those who are bereaved and those who have children with injuries or life-long disabilities due to failings in care…”
Support for Families Affected by Poor Maternity Care
At CL Medilaw, our national team of birth and maternity injury lawyers is dedicated to advocating for families who have had a traumatic birth experience due to failings in NHS maternity care. For more information about how we can support families through birth injuries, please visit our dedicated birth injury page.
*December 2025 Update: Interim Report Published
Since the announcement of this inquiry, the national review of maternity services has released an interim report highlighting ongoing safety and quality concerns across England’s maternity and neonatal services. Families’ experiences reveal systemic failings, including care being dismissed, discrimination affecting outcomes for women of colour, gaps in basic standards of care, and birth plans not being followed. Read our full article on the interim report here.
If you or your child has experienced harm due to unsafe or negligent maternity or neonatal care, our national team of birth injury solicitors can provide expert advice and support.
Contact us today for a confidential consultation to understand your options.
