The Royal College of Midwives in Scotland has launched a new safe staffing campaign and manifesto, urging the Scottish Government to take urgent action to address workforce pressures that it says are putting women, babies and midwives at risk.
Unveiled at an event in Edinburgh this week, the manifesto sets out seven priorities the RCM says are essential to ensuring safe, high‑quality maternity care across Scotland.
The launch comes amid stark workforce data showing that over the past decade, the midwifery workforce in Scotland has grown by just 7.9% - almost half the growth seen in nursing (13.4%) and less than a quarter of the increase in doctors (28.4%).
The RCM warns that without decisive action, staffing shortages will continue to undermine care quality, staff wellbeing and patient safety.
Midwives, students, educators and maternity leaders attended the launch, including Hilary Alba, a specialist midwife at Princess Royal Maternity Hospital, who shared frontline experiences of delivering care during life‑changing moments for families.
The RCM Scotland manifesto calls for coordinated action across several areas:
1. Safe Staffing
2. A Learning Profession
4. Improving Health and Prevention
5. Our Workplace, Your Birthplace
The RCM says its proposals are designed to improve outcomes for women and babies while supporting the wellbeing and retention of staff working in increasingly pressured maternity services. Jaki Lambert, RCM Director for Scotland, said:
“Midwives hold the future of a healthy Scotland in their hands. They play a key role in boosting women and communities’ health and giving each baby the best start in life. But without safe staffing our midwives are being stretched beyond breaking point and we’re denying women and babies the comprehensive care they desperately need and deserve.
“We already know what the issues are: not enough staff, not enough resources and not enough of a skill mix. The time for talking is over. This manifesto calls for a funded workforce plan, safe staffing ratios and genuine investment in maternity services.
“Women deserve choice, babies deserve safety and midwives deserve the resources to provide the care they’re trained to give.”
The organisation has emphasised that it stands ready to work constructively with the Scottish Government and health boards to deliver the changes outlined in the manifesto.
Without reform, the RCM warns, workforce pressures will continue to compromise safety, limit capacity and place unsustainable strain on midwives across Scotland.
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