Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what recent assessment he has made of the quality and extent of postnatal care available during the first six to eight weeks after birth; and if he will make a statement.

We have made improving maternity services, including care during the postnatal period, a key objective in our Mandate to NHS England.

The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) quality standard for postnatal care (QS37, published July 2013) assists NHS England in the commissioning and provision of consistent postnatal care, whilst setting out the core care and support that every woman and their baby should have during the postnatal period.

In December 2013 the Care Quality Commission, the independent regulator of health and adult social care in England, published the results of its latest Maternity Survey, which asked 60,000 women who gave birth in England in February that year about their experiences of maternity care. The survey found that women’s experiences of maternity care had improved overall compared with previous years, but that further progress was needed.

Since October 2013, the Friends and Family Test has been in use in all maternity services. Data is published monthly on the four stages of the maternity pathway, including scores for “postnatal ward” and “postnatal community provision”. By making these ratings public, we are giving patients the power to choose the best place for their care. This test gives a real time snap shot of the service and is helping drive up standards and make sure maternity care is truly focused on what mothers and families want.