Families concerned over maternity reviews 'overlap'

The families of women and children affected by failings in Nottingham's maternity services said they are concerned two reports are set to be published within the space of a week.

Last month, it was confirmed an independent report by senior midwife Donna Ockenden about maternity services at Nottingham University Hospitals (NUH) NHS Trust will be published on 24 June.

On Wednesday, families involved in that review were told a report following a nationwide investigation launched by the government last year is set to be released on 30 June.

The Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) said the reviews would help ensure maternity and neonatal services were safe for every family.

The Ockenden review into services at NUH was launched on 1 September 2022 and is the largest maternity inquiry in the history of the NHS, looking at care provided in about 2,500 cases between 2012 and 2025.

In August last year, Baroness Amos was appointed chair of the National Maternity and Neonatal Investigation, ordered by then-Health and Social Care Secretary Wes Streeting.

In December, it published an interim report outlining its findings.

More than 8,000 people had submitted evidence by February, with Baroness Amos meeting more than 400 families.

Families in Nottingham released a joint statement criticising the decision to publish the Amos report days after the Ockenden review.

The families said it will come when some people will also be receiving "individual reports assessing the harm they experienced during this same period".

They asked for the Amos report's publication date "to be changed to respect the wellbeing for Nottingham families who have expended so much time and energy fighting to be heard".

"The overlap will result in an intense and demanding period for the families trying to manage the emotional burden of revisiting the most traumatic experience of their life," the statement added.

"The date for publication of the Amos Review report also risks diluting important discussions and reflections that will follow the Ockenden Review report, and places additional pressures on families."

A Department of Health and Social Care spokesperson said: "Our thoughts are with the families in Nottingham who have been failed so badly - every woman and baby deserves safe, compassionate care, and it is devastating when that is not the case.

"Both Donna Ockenden and Baroness Amos' reviews will help us ensure that maternity and neonatal services are safe for every family, and the voices of those who have bravely shared their experiences are central to this work.

"The new secretary of state has been clear that improving maternity services is a key priority, and we have already taken vital steps.

"This includes appointing a new maternity adviser and launching a package of measures to reduce stillbirths, maternal death and harm, neonatal death and preterm birth.

"The secretary of state is chairing a taskforce to ensure that the recommendations from both of these important reports is turned into action."

Listen to BBC Radio Nottingham on Sounds and follow BBC Nottingham on Facebook, on X, or on Instagram. Send your story ideas to eastmidsnews@bbc.co.uk or via WhatsApp on 0808 100 2210.