Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent steps his Department has taken to improve (a) safety and (b) other standards in maternity services at (i) Southend and (ii) Basildon Hospital.

Following the Care Quality Commission (CQC) rating of maternity services at Southend Hospital as Requires Improvement in January 2025, the trust made several changes to improve the quality of the service. These changes include ensuring qualified midwifery staff are always available to support the maternity telephone triage service, foetal monitoring equipment is regularly checked and available, and triage information is displayed in waiting areas to provide further guidance on waiting times.

Basildon Hospital’s maternity services were rated as Requires Improvement by the CQC in March 2024. The trust has made several changes to improve the service, including improvements to staffing, with midwifery vacancies now at their lowest ever, ensuring staff complete training and expanding midwifery support for the birth reflections clinic, and around quality assurance, with regular audits conducted and acted upon.

Basildon Hospital maternity services are part of the national Maternity Safety Support Programme, which puts in place oversight from the integrated care board (ICB), NHS England, and the Local Maternity and Neonatal System. This includes support from two Maternity Improvement Advisors, covering all three trust maternity sites. The trust is in the Improvement phase.

While improvements have been made, further work is required. The ICB will continue to support the Trust to enhance safety, care quality, and patient experience.