Released on: 23 June 2025
Responding to the announcement, Angela McConville, Chief Executive, NCT said:
“The recognition of the urgent need for reform and the announcement of a rapid national maternity investigation is a significant step forward, hard-won by the determination of bereaved families who have bravely spoken out over many years about the devastating failures in NHS maternity care.
“The government’s immediate actions are an important step to tackling deep-rooted inequalities, and improving the UK’s worst performing maternity services. Now the national investigation must move at pace to set out a clear, actionable and inclusive plan for every NHS maternity and neonatal unit.
"There is already a substantial body of evidence and clear recommendations from previous reviews and inquiries; this next step must rapidly bring together these learnings to deliver safe, personalised, high-quality care for every new parent. Once the process is complete, we would expect to see immediate and substantial investment in training, staffing, facilities, culture and service delivery.
"Getting this right could put an end to the unacceptable variations in outcomes between maternity units and the systemic inequalities that continue to harm Black and Asian women and babies, women who are disabled, those who live in deprived areas, face language or cultural barriers, or are otherwise marginalised by our society.
"We need a maternity system that truly listens to women and parents - when they ask questions or raise concerns, during labour, birth, and postnatally, when things go wrong, and crucially, as services are reviewed, redesigned, and improved.
“At NCT, we’ve seen firsthand the power of co-creating solutions with women and parents – real change can happen if the government listens, learns, and builds a well-resourced, safe, and equitable maternity system that works for all."
