Maternity Transformation

Consultation on birthing services at County Hospital, Stafford, and Samuel Johnson Community Hospital, Lichfield

A consultation on birthing services in Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent will begin in May, following approval by the Integrated Care Board (ICB) at a public meeting on Thursday 20 March 2025.

The consultation is about birthing services at our two freestanding midwife-led birthing units (FMBUs). These are based in County Hospital, Stafford, and Samuel Johnson Community Hospital, Lichfield.

What we will be consulting about

When the COVID-19 pandemic struck in March 2020, we had to temporarily stop providing birthing services at the two FMBUs. This was to make sure we had enough midwives to safely run the bigger maternity departments at Royal Stoke University Hospital and Queen’s Hospital, Burton.

The closure was intended to be short-term, and the units have stayed open for antenatal and postnatal care. However, a shortage of midwives – which has affected the whole of England – meant it was not possible for the two NHS trusts that provide the services to safely re-open the FMBUs for births.

Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent ICB, along with the neighbouring Derby and Derbyshire ICB, have been working with the trusts to explore the long-term future of the FMBUs and the home birthing services provided by each organisation. Home births were temporarily suspended at the start of the pandemic, but both trusts began taking bookings into the home birth service for those in early, low-risk pregnancy, from 1 April 2024.

At an event in September 2023, clinicians reviewed seven potential proposals to develop a shortlist of viable proposals. These were assessed against six essential criteria. During the event it was recommended that only one proposal is viable at this stage – which is to make permanent the temporary closure of birthing services at County hospital and Samuel Johnson Community Hospital. 

We presented this proposal at an online event in December 2023 and published a report of findings.

Options for hospital births within Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent and how these would be affected

Most babies in our area are born at Royal Stoke University Hospital and Queen’s Hospital, Burton. Both hospitals offer:

• Consultant-led units run by senior doctors with full medical support on hand. For example, there are maternity theatres if additional support or surgery is required.
• Midwife-led units, which are run by a team of midwives and are suitable only for low-risk pregnancies. They are designed to be a more relaxing environment. If you do need medical help during birth, specialist support is nearby within the hospital.

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

As explained above, the birthing services at the FMBUs at County Hospital, Stafford, and Samuel Johnson Hospital, Lichfield, have been temporarily closed since March 2020.

Like the hospital midwife-led units, FMBUs are designed to be more relaxing environments for birth.

Not all women can choose to give birth in an FMBU, as the units are only suitable for low-risk pregnancies. Before the COVID-19 pandemic, 94 women (8 per month) gave birth at County Hospital ​and 220 women (18 per month) gave birth at Samuel Johnson Community Hospital (2019/20 activity). The units were staffed by midwives on a 24/7 basis.

The proposal would make permanent the temporary closure of the birthing services at County Hospital, Stafford, and Samuel Johnson Community Hospital, Lichfield. However, the units would not close – they would continue to offer antenatal and postnatal care, as they do currently.

The proposal would mean that the home birth services would continue, with support from a community midwife, so women have the full range of low-risk birth settings to choose from.

What will the consultation involve?

We want to talk to and hear from women and families, staff and stakeholders across Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent. We want to:

• Explain the case for change and how we reached the recommendation for this proposal
• Understand views about the process we have undertaken and the proposal
• Offer reassurance about the scope of the proposal and our clinical model for maternity services.

We will work with the Maternity and Neonatal Voices Partnership, Healthwatch and the voluntary sector to help us talk to as many people as possible from different backgrounds and communities.

Has there been previous public involvement?

We have had previous conversations about maternity services in Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent in 2019 and 2021. A review of maternity services in 2023, which focused on the birthing services at the FMBUs, included a deliberative event in December 2023.

You can read more on this page: Public involvement about maternity services, 2019–23

Updates and further information

We’ll be updating the ICB website with much more information about the consultation on, or close to, the launch date. We’ll provide all the details you need to get involved, including links to the online survey, event dates and locations, and how to access the consultation document and other information.

You can access Board papers for 20 March on this ICB webpage.