Michelle Welsh Named Chair of Nottingham Maternity Improvement Board

Labour MP Michelle Welsh will chair a new Learning and Improvement Board at Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust after her appointment in May as the government's first National Maternity Adviser. The BBC reported that the independent maternity review into the trust, published on Wednesday, found potentially avoidable outcomes for mothers and babies in 520 cases.

The review, which began in September 2022 and was led by senior midwife Donna Ockenden, concluded that different care may have altered the outcome for 260 babies, including 155 who died and 105 who suffered serious brain injury.

About 2,500 families and more than 800 staff members contributed to the findings. The BBC reported that leaders at the trust were aware of serious issues in its maternity department going back to at least 2010 but failed to take action. Health Secretary James Murray described the revelations as chilling during an address to the House of Commons on Wednesday.

He welcomed Welsh's appointment to lead the improvement board. Welsh stated that the review findings reinforce the urgent need for change in maternity services and that she has campaigned for improvements for the past five and a half years. Donna Ockenden will co-chair the group representing families on the board alongside a family member.

She said she was pleased to remain in Nottingham to support the perinatal improvement journey at the trust. Kim Errington, whose son Teddy died at Nottingham City Hospital in November 2020, said an improvement board was not enough and called for a statutory public inquiry across England.

NUH has paid out £117 million in compensation related to maternity failings and received two record prosecution fines over the deaths of babies.