Maternity Transformation

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

NHS Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent Integrated Care Board (ICB) would like to thank everyone, including members of the public, stakeholders and partner organisations, for taking the time to share feedback and participate in the public consultation on midwife-led birthing services at County Hospital, Stafford, and Samuel Johnson Community Hospital, Lichfield.

Following publication of the Report of Findings in June 2026, a decision-making business case and proposal went to the ICB Boards in Common in September 2026. You can find the board paper (p149), consultation overview, formal public consultation plan, Quality impact assessments from 2024 and 2026, and Equality, Health Inequality Impact and Risk Assessments from 2024 and 2026. The decision taken was to make permanent the temporary closure of birthing services at County Hospital and Samuel Johnson Community Hospital and retain GTT and Anti-D immunoglobulin clinics at Queen’s Hospital, Burton. The pre-consultation business case was shared in ICB board papers 20 March 2025 (p79 onward), with appendices.

Background

The consultation considered a proposal to make permanent the temporary closure of the freestanding midwife-led birthing units introduced in March 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic. The formal public consultation took place between 12 May 2025 and 3 August 2025, during which more than 1,400 responses were received from members of the public, stakeholders and partner organisations.

While birthing services remained closed, antenatal and postnatal care has continued at both sites. Since the pandemic, Glucose Tolerance Testing (GTT) and Anti-D services have not been provided at Samuel Johnson Community Hospital, with these services delivered from alternative locations. Additional targeted engagement was undertaken throughout February 2026 to better understand the impact of these arrangements and identify any potential mitigations.

The Report of Findings summarises the feedback received through both the public consultation and further engagement activity. It supported the development of a Decision-Making Business Case, which went through ICB governance processes, prior to going to board in September 2026.

All feedback and evidence gathered through the consultation and engagement process was fully considered before a final decision-making business case and proposal was developed.

What are glucose tolerance tests (GTTs) and anti-D injections?

GTT is a blood test used to diagnose gestational diabetes, which can occur during pregnancy. Anti-D immunoglobin is given to women whose blood type is RhD negative to prevent an immune response when the baby’s blood type is RhD positive.

How can I find out more about the 2025 consultation?

You can read more about the 2025 consultation lower down this page, including links to documents you can download and other information pages on this website.

2025 consultation: The background

A 12-week consultation on birthing services in Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent ran from Monday 12 May to Sunday 3 August 2025.

The consultation was 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.

For more information, please download the consultation document: Birthing services at midwife-led units in County Hospital, Stafford, and Samuel Johnson Community Hospital, Lichfield

You can also read more about the consultation and proposal on these pages:

How we gathered views and how feedback is used

There was a great response to our survey, which was completed by more than 1,400 people, including 61 responses received to the easy read version.

We held four public meetings, two in Lichfield and two online. Two meetings were made available in Stafford, but due to low uptake from the public, those who did wish to attend were able to join online events instead.

As well as these formal meetings, we also went out to community groups such as parent and toddler sessions, postnatal support groups and well-baby clinics to chat to people who were there on the day to hear views and share information.

We gathered all the responses, views and comments from the survey, meetings, community group visits and correspondence. This feedback was independently analysed to produce a report of findings.

The consultation proposal

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.

NHS Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent Integrated Care Board (ICB), along with the neighbouring NHS 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 the service has now been fully restored.

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 there was only one viable proposal – to make permanent the temporary closure of birthing services at County Hospital and Samuel Johnson Community Hospital.

Options for hospital births within Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent

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

Consultant-led care, provided by senior doctors with full medical support on hand
Midwife-led care, which is a choice recommended only for low-risk pregnancies. The midwife-led areas 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 did 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, were temporarily closed since March 2020.

FMBUs are not recommended as a birthing choice for all women, as the units are suitable for low-risk pregnancies only. 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.

While the approved proposal makes permanent the temporary closure of the birthing services at County Hospital, Stafford, and Samuel Johnson Community Hospital, Lichfield, the units have not closed. They continue to offer antenatal and postnatal care, as they have since the 2020 temporary closure of birthing services.

Home birth services, are also being maintained so women across our area can consider this option.

Our aims during the consultation

We wanted to talk to and hear from women and families, staff and stakeholders across Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent. We wanted 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 worked 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. Read more about the review of maternity services 2023 at: Public involvement about maternity services, 2019–23.