A new taskforce has been set up to help improve the quality of NHS maternity and neonatal care in England, the government has announced.
The taskforce, made up of family representatives, senior NHS leaders, campaigners and academics, has promised to deliver “safer and higher-quality care” and “tackle deep-rooted inequalities”.
The group will also “deliver urgent action” on the recommendations of an independent investigation into maternity and neonatal services in England, which Baroness Amos – who is leading the probe – said are “failing too many women, babies, families, and staff”.
Sky News has been putting a spotlight on maternity care in the UK and will today host an event featuring women sharing their birth experiences with an expert panel.
Birth Experiences: Your Stories will take place from 10am until 12pm at Millie & Maisie Play Cafe in Clapham, and people are invited to attend the event in person or watch the livestream here.
‘Truly meaningful change’
Health Secretary Wes Streeting, who will chair the new taskforce and who ordered the national investigation last year, said he wanted to make sure “families harmed by maternity care get the truth and accountability they deserve”.
In a statement, he said that “to deliver truly meaningful change – so that other families do not face the ordeals too many are already enduring – we must be ready to act swiftly”.
“This 17-strong taskforce will start work straight away, so we will be ready to drive improvement from the moment the investigation’s recommendations are published,” he added.
As well as the findings from Baroness Amos’s investigation, the taskforce will also look at recommendations from the Thirlwall Inquiry – a public inquiry into the crimes of former nurse Lucy Letby – and the independent review into maternity services at Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust.
Helen Gittos, a family representative on the taskforce, said the group would work to ensure “the changes that are so urgently needed are properly implemented”.
“No one can be in any doubt about the scale and seriousness of the problems in maternity services,” she said.
“I hope the professional bodies concerned will come together to bravely, boldly and decisively take the decisions that will create services that women can trust.”
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Duncan Burton, chief nursing officer for England, added: “Every woman and baby deserve safe, compassionate care during pregnancy and birth, and the very best start in life.
“Although NHS maternity and neonatal teams work incredibly hard to support women and families every day, we know there is more we must urgently do to improve care and experience.”
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