Maternity Transformation – What is the proposal and why is it needed?

The proposal is to make permanent the temporary closure of the birthing services at County Hospital and Samuel Johnson Community Hospital.

However, this does not mean that all maternity services would stop at these hospitals. You would still be able to have your antenatal and postnatal appointments at these sites.

The proposal would not affect any services at Royal Stoke University Hospital or at Queen’s Hospital in Burton.

We would also:

• Maintain the home birth service throughout our local area, so that women have this choice available to them
• Work to put continuity of carer in place for women identified as most needing consistent support from the same team of midwives. This is already offered at Queen’s Hospital, Burton.

This remains a proposal – no final decisions have been made.

Why the proposal is needed

The number of babies born in the FMBUs was low, and is likely to fall further

In the year 2019/20, before the temporary closure of the FMBUs, these were the total number of births in the units:

Location	Births (2019/20)
County Hospital FMBU	94 (about 8 each month)
Samuel Johnson FMBU	220 (about 18 each month)

Many more babies were born at Royal Stoke University Hospital, Royal Derby Hospital and Queen’s Hospital, Burton:

Location	Consultant-led units (2019/20)	Consultant-led units (2023/24)	Midwife-led units (2019/20)	Midwife-led units (2023/24)
Royal Stoke University Hospital	5,264	5,299	970	595
Royal Derby Hospital	4,770	4,938	802	737
Queen’s Hospital, Burton	2,329	2,528	584	0*

* During 2022, midwife-led births were included within the consultant-led data at Queen’s Hospital, Burton due to a change in the way the overall data was electronically collated. This meant midwife-led and consultant-led births could only be separated out manually. The introduction of Badgernet, a new electronic maternity record, in June 2024, is expected to support the service to electronically capture the different pathways of births going forward. 

FMBUs are not recommended as a birthing choice for all women, as they are suitable for low-risk pregnancies only. Some women who choose midwife-led care also prefer the reassurance of being in a larger hospital, with additional support close at hand.

Although the trusts promoted the birthing services at the FMBUs, the number of births there continued to fall.

Birthrate Plus® assessments have shown that the number of high-risk pregnancies is increasing across our area. You can read more about this in our consultation document, which you can download from our involvement page.

With fewer low-risk pregnancies, the number of women who would be advised that FMBUs are a suitable birthing choice would be lower.

Why would a low number of births at FMBUs be a problem?

Midwives’ skills and experience – these units are recommended to manage at least 350 births per year, but the local numbers were much lower and expected to fall further. Midwives working there may not experience enough births to maintain their skills and competency at the right level.

Not making the best use of staff time – to provide a round-the-clock birth service as before, the units must be staffed 24/7, with two midwives for every birth.A low number of births would mean that midwives’ time and skills are under-used. We need to make the best use of their time, so that we can provide the best possible care and support to the women and families using our maternity services.

Get involved

Visit our involvement page for links to the survey, event details, and to download the consultation document.