Trust leaves maternity support scheme after improvements

Maternity and neonatal services at a hospital trust have exited a national improvement programme after "sustained improvements" in safety and care.

University Hospitals of Morecambe Bay NHS Foundation Trust (UHMBT) had been part of the scheme since 2021, when maternity services were rated by inspectors as "inadequate".

The trust has maternity units at Furness General Hospital, Barrow, and Westmorland General Hospital in Kendal in Cumbria, as well as the Royal Lancaster Infirmary in Lancashire.

NHS England said improvements in leadership, staffing and governance mean the service no longer requires intensive national support. UHMBT's Anna Telfer said it was a "significant milestone".

In 2021, the trust was placed in the recovery programme after a "significant downturn" in the quality of its services.

In January, the Care Quality Commission (CQC) said the trust's maternity care was "exemplary" and found "widespread improvements" in its maternity and emergency care after previously being told to improve by inspectors.

The CQC carried out unannounced visits to check on improvements to its maternity services at Furness General Hospital, Westmorland General Hospital and Royal Lancaster Infirmary.

Between 2004 and 2013, 11 babies and one mother died at Furness General Hospital in Barrow which prompted a highly critical government-backed report in 2015, which said a "lethal mix" of failures led to a number of deaths.

An investigation published in June of the trust's maternity wards - part of a wider National Maternity and Neonatal Investigation chaired by Baroness Valerie - found patients were made to "feel like a burden on the service" and "frightened and uncertain".

Susan Foyle, the trust's director of midwifery, said that while leaving the national improvement programme was an important milestone, the trust should "never lose sight of the families who experienced harm and loss in the past."

She said: "Their bravery and experiences have shaped many of the improvements we have made, and they continue to drive our commitment to provide safe, compassionate and high-quality care."

She added: "We know there is still more work to do, and we remain absolutely focused on providing the safest and highest quality care possible."

Telfer, chief nursing officer, said the move was a "significant milestone for our maternity and neonatal services".

She said: "We have strengthened leadership, governance and patient safety arrangements, reduced workforce vacancies, improved staff support and ensured that women and families are much more closely involved in shaping services.

"There is much more work to do to further improve and ensure the changes are embedded for many years to come, but this milestone shows we are heading in the right direction," she added.

Dr Helen Skinner, chief medical officer, said: "The next phase of our work, including implementation of the national recommendations set out by Baroness Amos, will focus on sustaining improvement and striving for outstanding services."

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