Key facts
- A report on the Nottingham NHS maternity scandal will detail "horrendous" failings, including racism.
- The inquiry covers 2,505 cases of maternal and infant harm between April 2012 and May 2025.
- Donna Ockenden is leading the review, which has gathered evidence from approximately 850 staff and ex-staff.
- Nottinghamshire police are investigating potential corporate manslaughter charges.
- The Nottingham Maternity Families Group is calling for a national public inquiry into maternity care.
- The Nursing and Midwifery Council is investigating 96 midwives and nurses at the trust.
A highly anticipated report into the Nottingham NHS maternity scandal, described as the biggest in the health service's history, is expected to detail "horrendous" failings, including racism, in care provided to mothers and babies. The inquiry, led by senior midwife Donna Ockenden, has examined 2,505 cases involving deaths and injuries of mothers and infants between April 2012 and May 2025 at Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust.
Sources familiar with the report's conclusions anticipate "very bad" and "challenging" findings, which will be laid out in a document exceeding 350 pages. Ockenden's investigation, which began over four years ago, has heard from approximately 850 staff and ex-staff, alongside the families affected.
Families have demanded accountability, leading to the full-scale inquiry. Nottinghamshire police are also reviewing the care provided to at least 200 families as part of Operation Perth, considering potential corporate manslaughter charges against the trust. The Nottingham Maternity Families Group has urged Labour leader Keir Starmer to initiate a statutory public inquiry into maternity care nationwide, asserting that the problems are not confined to Nottingham.
The Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) is concurrently investigating 96 midwives and nurses from the trust for alleged misconduct, with 15 cases under full investigation and one midwife currently suspended. Health Secretary James Murray has pledged to implement the recommendations from both Ockenden's report and a separate government-commissioned inquiry led by Valerie Amos, aiming to ensure tangible action rather than allowing recommendations to be shelved.
Michelle Welsh, the government's maternity adviser and an MP, confirmed discussions are underway regarding a potential public inquiry, noting that such a process could compel witness testimony, unlike Ockenden's review. Welsh shared a personal account of attempting to raise concerns at Nottingham City hospital, only to be dissuaded by a senior obstetrician. Despite ongoing improvements acknowledged by the trust's chief executive, Anthony May, the Care Quality Commission (CQC) recently rated the maternity services at both of the trust's hospitals as "requires improvement."