Donna Ockenden delivers findings from three year review into maternity failings at Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust

Earlier this week, the findings of the review were published, with Ockenden quoted as saying she “hoped her conclusions would drive real and lasting change to maternity services in England”.

Largest review of its kind

The review was the largest of its kind in NHS history. About 2,500 families and more than 800 members of staff contributed to the inquiry, which examined events from 2012 to 2025. Experts concluded that a bullying culture, poor and sometimes cruel care, together with a dismissive attitude to women i.e. not listing or acting promptly on concerns, delays in women having scans and a lack of learning from patient safety incidents, contributed to more than 500 mothers and babies coming to harm, or dying, as a result.

In addition, failures to monitor babies properly during labour, misinterpretation of CTG trace-reading of the baby’s health while still in utero, not recognising when babies were in distress, and midwives not escalating worrying cases urgently to doctors to make rapid decisions on the care and treatment needed, also played a part in the catastrophic consequences.

Avoidable outcomes

The 401-page document paints a bleak, horrendous and brutal picture of maternity care in Nottingham. Its findings show that a total of 444 women and 76 newborn babies suffered potentially avoidable outcomes because they received substandard treatment over a 13 year period in two Nottingham hospitals – Nottingham City Hospital and Queen’s Medical Centre.

The review found there were potentially avoidable outcomes for mothers and babies in 444 maternity cases, alongside 76 neonatal cases. It also said that different care may have altered the outcome for 260 babies; 155 of which died, whilst a further 105 suffered sometimes life-changing injuries due to substandard care. But most shocking of all was that leaders at the Trust knew there were serious issues in its maternity department going back to at least 2010, but failed to take action to prevent more harm and deaths.

Rachael Flanagan, Head of Medical Negligence at Alsters Kelley said. “We hope that this review will deliver lasting change in maternity services across NHS hospitals in England. It is completely inexcusable that pregnant women seeking help at Nottingham University Hospitals NHS trust were in some cases treated so poorly – sometimes with devastating consequences – and that healthcare professionals and families who did as much as they could to flag the risks were largely ignored.”

Overhaul of childbirth services

Rachael continued. “This is not the only scathing indictment of poor maternity care in recent years. Despite similar failures at Morecambe Bay, East Kent and Shrewsbury and Telford, it appears that lessons have yet to be learned and the promises of improvements in care sadly lacking. What is required is a complete overhaul of childbirth services, so regardless of which maternity department you use, you will always have access to safe and high-quality care.”

Rachael concluded. “Both myself, and my colleagues, have a huge amount of experience when it comes to birth injuries. Our approach is personal, sensitive, and caring. We understand you may have already suffered harm in the hands of those you put your trust in, which is why we put our clients at the heart of everything we do. With years of experience, we aim to minimise the impact of the clinical negligence claim process and efficiently secure the compensation you may be entitled to.”

Free initial meeting for support and advice

If you have any concerns about the maternity treatment you, or someone you know, has received and would like help or advice, please contact Rachael Flanagan on 01926 356030 or email rachael.flanagan@alsterskelley.com.

We offer a free 30-minute appointment where we can support and guide you in the right direction. And thanks to our network of offices covering Banbury, Coventry, Leamington, Nuneaton, Stratford-upon-Avon and Southam we are very accessible too.