NHS maternity services failed to prevent hundreds of deaths and injuries

Hundreds of mothers and babies died or suffered serious harm in NHS hospitals in England because of poor maternity care, investigations have found. At Nottingham University Hospitals, more than 500 patients were affected between 2006 and 2024. At Shrewsbury and Telford NHS Trust, around 300 babies were left brain-damaged or died from causes that could have been prevented. An earlier inquiry found 11 babies and one mother died at Furness General Hospital due to staff shortages and poor teamwork.

Investigators identified repeated problems across hospitals, including too few staff, inadequate equipment, and managers who buried complaints rather than looking into them. The UK's maternal death rate has risen by 20 percent since 2009 and is now one of the highest in Europe. A national inquiry is now examining maternity services at 12 NHS trusts.