Health and Social Care Secretary Wes Streeting has announced a rapid national investigation into NHS maternity and neonatal services, aiming to deliver truth, accountability, and urgent improvements in care following years of systemic failings.
The investigation, launching this summer and reporting by December 2025, will scrutinise the worst-performing services and assess the entire maternity system. It follows a series of independent reviews that uncovered repeated failures in safety, leadership, and compassionate care across multiple NHS trusts.
The two-part investigation will begin by urgently reviewing up to 10 of the most concerning maternity and neonatal units — including Sussex — to provide answers to affected families. The second phase will consolidate findings from past inquiries into a single, national action plan to improve care standards across all NHS maternity services.
A newly established National Maternity and Neonatal Taskforce, chaired by the Secretary of State, will oversee the process. The taskforce will include clinicians, experts, and bereaved families, ensuring the investigation is co-produced with those most impacted.
Announcing the investigation, Health Secretary Wes Streeting said:
“For the past year, I have been meeting bereaved families from across the country who have lost babies or suffered serious harm during what should have been the most joyful time in their lives.
“What they have experienced is devastating - deeply painful stories of trauma, loss and a lack of basic compassion - caused by failures in NHS maternity care that should never have happened. Their bravery in speaking out has made it clear: we must act - and we must act now.
“I know nobody wants better for women and babies than the thousands of NHS midwives, obstetricians, maternity and neonatal staff, and that the vast majority of births are safe and without incident, but it’s clear something is going wrong.
“That’s why I’ve ordered a rapid national investigation to make sure these families get the truth and the accountability they deserve, and ensure no parent or baby is ever let down again. I want staff to come with us on this, to improve things for everyone.
“We‘re also taking immediate steps to hold failing services to account and give staff the tools they need to deliver the kind, safe, respectful care every family deserves.
“Maternity care should be the litmus test by which this government is judged on patient safety, and I will do everything in my power to ensure no family has to suffer like this again.”
Alongside the investigation, the government is rolling out a package of immediate reforms:
- Direct intervention by NHS leaders in underperforming trusts to enforce cultural and safety improvements.
- A new digital safety system to be deployed by November, enabling real-time monitoring of risks across maternity services.
- An anti-discrimination programme to tackle inequalities in care for Black, Asian, and underserved communities.
This investigation is a key part of the government’s Plan for Change, aimed at building an NHS fit for the future.
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