A leading midwife has issued a stark warning that maternity care within the National Health Service is not meeting acceptable standards, as the number of women dying during pregnancy or shortly after childbirth continues to climb. In response, NHS England has announced a comprehensive overhaul of maternity services aimed at drastically reducing mortality rates, including the introduction of additional screening for blood clots and enhanced mental health support.
Rising maternal mortality rates
According to data from the MBRACE-UK report published last year by the University of Oxford, maternal mortality has risen by 21 percent compared to the 2009-2011 baseline, or 7 percent when deaths related to COVID-19 are excluded. The NHS recorded 252 maternal deaths between 2022 and 2024, and 257 women died during or after pregnancy from 2021 to 2023. Research indicates that improvements in care could have altered the outcome for nearly half (45 percent) of these cases.
Kate Brintworth, the chief midwifery officer for England, acknowledged the shortcomings in a recent interview with Sky News. “None of us think that care is in the right place. We don’t think things are good enough. But we are starting to see improvements in safety with all the packages of care we have put in,” she said. She added, “It's a terrible anguish to lose a child. I think it's one of the worst things that can happen to a human, and our responsibility as leaders in maternity is to make sure those families don't experience that anguish.”
New clinical standards and interventions
The forthcoming changes will require all pregnant women to undergo an early risk assessment for venous thromboembolism—blood clots that form in deep veins and have become the leading cause of maternal death—before their first antenatal appointment. Women identified as high risk will be offered blood thinners within 72 hours to prevent clots. Additionally, women with epilepsy will gain access to a local specialist team for managing their condition during pregnancy and will be provided with safe medications. Routine mental health assessments will be implemented, and those in need will be referred to perinatal mental health specialists.
Maternal suicides were the leading cause of death between six weeks and one year after pregnancy among women who died from 2022 to 2024, with psychiatric causes accounting for 33 percent of deaths in that period. The new measures also stipulate that women experiencing a haemorrhage or significant postpartum bleeding will receive care from specialist obstetricians and anaesthetists more promptly, and substantial blood loss will be escalated earlier.
Implementation timeline and expected impact
The measures are scheduled for rollout in March 2027 and are anticipated to reduce deaths from blood clots, strokes, cardiac disease, suicide, sepsis, obstetric haemorrhage, and pre-eclampsia—conditions that collectively account for 52 percent of maternal deaths. Ms. Brintworth expressed hope that these changes will significantly reduce avoidable fatalities. “Every death during or after pregnancy is a tragedy, especially when differences in care may have changed the outcome. We still see symptoms of serious medical problems being missed, especially for Black and Asian women. By setting out these clinical standards and holding hospitals to account we can significantly reduce avoidable deaths and prevent future tragedies,” she said.
Health Secretary Wes Streeting emphasised his commitment to transforming maternity care and noted that the NHS has recruited 2,000 additional midwives. “Every woman deserves to feel safe and supported throughout pregnancy and childbirth. While the vast majority of births are safe, we know that some women are being harmed from conditions that are completely treatable and preventable. These new clinical standards will mean every woman gets the risk assessment and care they need from the very start of their pregnancy,” he stated.
