For most families, the birth of a child is one of life's most significant and positive moments. Every day, around 1,500 babies are born in England, and the majority of mothers and babies receive safe and effective care.
However, maternity services across England continue to face increasing scrutiny following a series of national reviews, investigations and reports highlighting concerns about standards of care, patient safety and avoidable harm.
Recent media attention has focused on maternity services at hospitals including University Hospitals Coventry and Warwickshire NHS Trust, while ongoing national investigations continue to examine whether systemic issues within NHS maternity services are contributing to poor outcomes for women and babies.
Our Medical Negligence team regularly supports families affected by birth injuries and maternity-related negligence. While not every difficult birth experience amounts to negligence, recent reports suggest there is still significant work to be done to improve maternity care across England.
A growing national concern
Concerns about maternity services are not limited to individual hospitals.
In June 2025, Health Secretary Wes Streeting announced an independent national investigation into maternity and neonatal services across England.* Led by Baroness Valerie Amos, the investigation was established to examine the systemic causes of unacceptable care affecting women, babies and families and to bring together lessons from previous maternity reviews and inquiries.
In February 2026, Baroness Amos published the Interim Report of the Independent National Maternity and Neonatal Investigation. The report paints a concerning picture of maternity services, operating under significant pressure and identifies six key issues affecting care across England:
The report highlights that maternity care is becoming increasingly complex. Women are having children later in life, more pregnancies involve pre-existing health conditions and maternity teams are caring for patients with increasingly complex medical needs.
At the same time, progress towards national targets to reduce stillbirths, neonatal deaths and brain injuries has stalled. The report also notes that maternal mortality rates have increased, rising from 8.8 deaths per 100,000 maternities between 2017 and 2019 to 12.8 deaths per 100,000 maternities between 2022 and 2024.**
Perhaps most concerningly, the investigation found recurring concerns around communication, transparency and accountability. Families described feeling unheard when raising concerns and struggling to obtain clear explanations when something went wrong.
The scale of the investigation demonstrates the extent of concern surrounding maternity care. By the publication of the interim report, evidence had been gathered from more than 8,000 women and families and over 6,700 maternity and neonatal staff across England.
What do women say about their maternity care?
The findings of the Care Quality Commission (CQC) Maternity Survey 2025 echo many of the concerns identified by the Amos investigation.
The survey found that:
Experiences of maternity care were often influenced by factors such as age, ethnicity, language barriers and socio-economic circumstances.
These findings do not automatically indicate negligence. However, they do highlight areas where communication, staffing levels and patient experience continue to require improvement.
Why do maternity negligence claims arise?
In our experience, maternity negligence claims often arise from a combination of factors rather than a single catastrophic error.
Common issues can include delays in recognising complications, failures to escalate concerns, inadequate monitoring of mother or baby, communication breakdowns between healthcare professionals and delays in treatment.
Staffing pressures within NHS maternity services have been widely reported. We frequently see concerns arise during shift changes, handovers and weekend staffing rotations, where vital information may not be communicated effectively between clinical teams.
While healthcare professionals work in demanding and often challenging environments, every patient is entitled to receive care that meets an appropriate professional standard.
The devastating impact of birth injuries
Birth injuries are among the most serious and complex cases encountered in clinical negligence law.
When mistakes occur during pregnancy, labour, delivery or shortly after birth, the consequences can be life-changing for both the child and their family.
Serious birth injuries may result in:
Children affected by serious birth injuries may require specialist equipment, adapted accommodation, therapies, ongoing care and support throughout their lives.
The financial implications are significant. NHS Resolution figures indicate that maternity-related claims account for more than 50% of the total value of NHS clinical negligence liabilities, with the projected long-term cost of maternity negligence claims estimated at approximately £27 billion.
When does a poor birth experience become negligence?
Not every difficult, traumatic or disappointing birth experience will amount to medical negligence.
To bring a successful clinical negligence claim, it must be shown that:
For example, poor communication or a distressing experience may understandably cause upset and frustration. However, a legal claim requires evidence that substandard care caused identifiable harm.
This distinction can be complex, which is why independent medical experts are often required to review the treatment provided and determine whether negligence occurred.
How Coles Miller can help
At Coles Miller, our specialist Medical Negligence team understands the profound impact that maternity negligence and birth injuries can have on families.
We regularly support parents who are seeking answers following concerns about maternity care and help to investigate whether negligence may have contributed to an injury.
Our experienced medical negligence team can:
Where negligence has occurred, compensation can help provide access to specialist therapies, care packages, adapted accommodation, educational support and long-term financial security.
Supporting families beyond settlement
At Coles Miller, our support does not end when a claim settles.
For families affected by serious birth injuries and disabilities, we can also assist with the practical arrangements that often follow a successful claim. This may include establishing personal injury trusts to help protect entitlement to means-tested benefits, arranging appropriate care packages, accessing ongoing support services and advising on adaptations to the home to improve safety, accessibility and quality of life.
We work closely with families and other professionals to help ensure that compensation is used effectively to support a child's long-term needs and future independence.
Looking ahead
The findings of the Amos investigation, the CQC Maternity Survey and other major maternity reviews make it clear that improving maternity care remains a national priority.
While many families continue to receive excellent care from dedicated NHS staff every day, recent reports highlight ongoing concerns around staffing, communication, accountability and patient experience.
Every family deserves safe, compassionate and high-quality maternity care. Where that care falls below acceptable standards and injury results, it is important that families have access to answers, support and specialist legal advice.
If you have concerns about the maternity care that you or your child received and would like to discuss your options, our experienced team of solicitors would be happy to help.
Get Expert Legal Advice
If you have a medical negligence claim, please contact Lydia Barnett, Partner at Coles Miller Solicitors.
Her practice covers a wide range of medical negligence matters. Lydia regularly deals with cases of high complexity and value.
* https://rcm.org.uk/rapid-review/
** https://www.npeu.ox.ac.uk/mbrrace-uk/data-brief/maternal-mortality-2022-2024