NCT Welcomes Launch of Working Group on Maternity Services

The National Childbirth Trust welcomed the announcement today by Health Minister Yvette Cooper at the Institute of Public Policy Research that a working group on maternity services is to be established to look into maternity provision.

The NCT is represented in the working group on maternity services, along with the Royal Colleges, health authorities and other user groups. Commenting on the launch of the working group, Belinda Phipps, Chief Executive of the NCT, said:

"There are changes happening in maternity services throughout the country -
hospitals closing, paediatricians withdrawing from smaller units and primary care trusts about to take over commissioning.

The NHS plan talks about the importance of running services to meet parents' needs, yet parents and babies often seem to be forgotten when maternity services are reconfigured. The involvement of user groups such as
the NCT in the working group will enable women's voices to be heard."

The NCT wants the Government to provide a framework within which local decisions are made, emphasising the importance of offering services close to people's homes whenever possible, so that they are more accessible and
less intimidating.

Specialist medical services for high-risk mothers and babies may need to be more centralised but healthy women with normal pregnancies must have access to midwife-led care in smaller units closer to home.

The NCT also welcomed the extension of the Sure Start programme to cover pregnant women and their partners on low incomes.  Belinda Phipps said:

"It is a fact that good nutrition, help to stop smoking, access to benefits, breastfeeding support and good quality childcare all have far-reaching physical and emotional benefits for mothers and their babies, but too many low-income parents are denied even these necessities. 

The extension of Sure Start to pregnant women and their partners will enable more families, especially those on low incomes, to give their children a better start in life and help ensure a happier and healthier future for them."

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