United Kingdom

Nottingham Maternity Failures Linked to Hundreds of Avoidable Deaths and Injuries

Is this a failure of NHS leadership or a dangerous ideology that put natural birth above safety?

Published JUN 24

Nottingham Maternity Failures Linked to Hundreds of Avoidable Deaths and Injuries

Story

Above: Donna Ockenden during a press conference at Crowne Plaza Hotel Nottingham, England, on June 24. Image credit: Jacob King/PA Images/Getty Images

The Facts

An independent review into maternity services at Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust found over 500 mothers and babies suffered harm or death that was "potentially avoidable" between 2012 and 2025, in what has become the largest maternity inquiry in NHS history.
Guardian
UK Government
The review, led by senior midwife Donna Ockenden, found that different care may have altered the outcome for 156 babies who died, including 94 stillbirths and 62 neonatal deaths, and identified 105 potentially avoidable severe brain injuries.
The Telegraph
Nottinghamshire Live
The report identified "deeply embedded systemic failures" at the trust, including a bullying and toxic culture, chronic staff shortages and repeated failures to escalate concerns, with more than 40% of staff reporting they had witnessed or experienced bullying.
Express
Sky News
In February 2025, NUH was fined a record £1.6 million over the "avoidable" deaths of three babies in 2021, after admitting to six counts of failing to provide safe care. Nottinghamshire Police also launched a separate criminal investigation, Operation Perth, in 2023.
The Telegraph
BBC News
Health Secretary James Murray announced the expansion of Martha's Rule to all maternity units in England, giving patients 24/7 access to a second opinion. He said "no options are off the table" regarding a statutory public inquiry, as called for by affected families.
Express
Guardian
The government announced that NHS staff who refuse to give evidence to maternity inquiries could face up to two years in prison. A maternity care expert told GB News that fragmented record systems and reduced safety funding — cut from £95 million to £2 million — have compounded care risks.
GB News
The Telegraph

Sources Split

LEFT

CENTER

RIGHT

ESTAB
CRIT

CENTER

PRO
ESTAB

The Spin

Narrative A

The Nottingham maternity scandal isn't just a local failure — it's proof that NHS leadership knew about dangerous, deadly care for over a decade and chose silence over accountability. Bullying cultures, chronic understaffing and suppressed evidence cost hundreds of mothers and babies their lives or health. Senior managers who refused to cooperate with the inquiry should be removed from the NHS entirely.

UK Government

Guardian

Narrative B

Nottingham's maternity disaster reflects a system that replaced sound medical judgment with a fetishized "natural birth" ideology, leaving women scared, ignored and denied proper intervention. A maternity safety budget slashed from £95 million to £2 million gutted the resources midwives needed. Until the NHS stops treating childbirth as a spiritual journey and starts treating it as the medical event it is, more babies will die.

Unherd

GB News