Dave Robertson urges ICB to protect women's access to high-quality maternity care

Dave Robertson, MP for Lichfield, Burntwood and The Villages, wrote to Staffordshire and Stoke-On-Trent Integrated Health Board (ICB) last week on the subject of maternity services.

Below is Mr Robertson's letter. Dear Dr Paul Edmondson-Jones,

I am writing to you regarding healthcare provision for women in Lichfield, Burntwood and the Villages.

Many residents have contacted me with concerns about the proposal to permanently close the birthing unit at Samuel Johnson Community Hospital in Lichfield. They are rightly worried about any proposals that may reduce patient choice.

I do not want to see a reduction in the quality of healthcare available to women.

Our area has seen notable population growth in recent years. Between 2011 and 2021, Lichfield’s population increased by 7.8% to 34,738, while Burntwood’s rose by 2.6% to 26,714. This growth has inevitably increased demand for local healthcare services.

As such I want to understand the ICB’s plans to support expectant mothers in my constituency and receive assurances that women in our area will continue to have access to high-quality maternity and birthing services.

The consultation states that women will continue to have access to midwife-led care at Queen’s Hospital in Burton via “dedicated side rooms on the labour ward”. But in 2023, maternity care at University Hospitals of Derby and Burton – the trust that runs maternity care at the hospital, had its rating downgraded to inadequate.

While efforts have been made to turn this around, many women do not believe that the midwife-led service in Burton is of the standard offered at the Samuel Johnson Hospital.

Looking at the offer in Burton in more detail, although the consultation mentions “dedicated side rooms” women who have used this facility have stated that there is just one room which is often unavailable. Given this, it is easy to understand why expectant mothers might question whether this limited service represents a first-class midwife-led maternity unit.

If the decision is made to permanently close the birthing unit in Lichfield, what plans are there to invest in midwife-led services in Burton so that women can continue to receive high-quality maternity care?

Another issue that many of my constituents are keen for assurances on is home births. Having the choice to give birth in the comfort of their own home is an option many women in our area want.

Can the ICB give an assurance that the home birthing service will remain in place?

The consultation states that a quarter of births across Stoke and Staffordshire were outside of the area. There has been no research done to show how many women would have chosen a Freestanding Birthing Unit (FMBU) if it had been available.

There has been no forecasting of the birthrate in Lichfield and Burntwood. In 2023, 756 homes were built in Lichfield District. In 2024, there were 716.

How does the ICB plan to cope with future demand for midwife-led maternity services in our area?

The quality and safety of maternity services has been a focus of national policy in recent years. Concerns about safety within maternity services have also been raised in Care Quality Commission (CQC) ratings.

A report on the quality and safety of maternity care in England, published by the House of Commons Library earlier this year, states: “The CQC’s National review of maternity services in England (2022 to 2024) found that 47% of maternity services were rated as requiring improvement for safety.”

Independent investigations also raised concerns about staffing levels and their impact on patient safety.

The government’s 10 Year Plan for our NHS pledged to reinvent the healthcare system through three radical shifts – from hospital to community, from analogue to digital and from sickness to prevention.

The plan states: “If the NHS does not feel like a single, co-ordinated, patient-orientated service, that is for a simple reason: it is not one. It is hospital-centric, detached from communities and organises its care into multiple, fragmented silos. We need to shift to a model able to provide continuous, accessible and integrated care.

“The Neighbourhood Health Service is our alternative. It will bring care into local communities, convene professionals into patient-centred teams and end fragmentation.”

The idea behind this is that care should happen as locally as it can, in a patient’s home if possible and in a hospital if necessary.

How does the ICB’s plan for maternity care fit within the 10 Year Plan for our NHS?

Last year, Staffordshire County Council’s Women’s Health Strategy Working Group highlighted that independent reports across the healthcare sector consistently show the NHS often fails to keep women safe and to listen to them.

While women in the UK live longer on average than men, they spend a greater proportion of their lives in ill health and disability. Conditions such as menopause and endometriosis remain poorly understood and more must be done to improve education and access to information around women’s health.

There is also a lack of research into women’s health, and it is vital that women from all demographics are represented. Significant disparities in health outcomes persist based on age, sexuality, disability and ethnicity.

Evidence shows that individuals in working-class jobs, from ethnic minority backgrounds, living in rural or deindustrialised areas, or experiencing domestic violence or homelessness, are more likely to face worse NHS access, poorer outcomes, and shorter life expectancy.

The Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent (SSOT) needs assessment identified several unmet needs in our local population, including:

• Menstrual health and gynaecological conditions, with inequalities in access and timely diagnosis

• Cancer

• Fertility, pregnancy, pregnancy loss and post-natal support

• Infertility

• Health impacts of violence against women and girls

• Healthy ageing and long-term conditions

• Stakeholder engagement

The report makes clear that women’s health in Staffordshire reflects the national picture - there is more work to be done to meet these needs.

Stigma around women’s health, perceptions of unreliability due to sick leave, and lack of workplace support can negatively impact careers and wellbeing.

Nationally, women are more likely to be misdiagnosed, receive less pain relief after identical procedures, and be undertreated for pain. They are also less likely to be admitted to hospital when reporting chest pain and more likely to experience common mental health conditions.

A 2022 survey found that over 84% of women felt they were not listened to by healthcare professionals, and many reported delays of months or years before receiving a diagnosis. For example, 40% of women with endometriosis needed 10 or more GP appointments before being referred to a specialist.

62% of women said a health condition or disability had impacted their experience in the workplace. Around one in four said this affected their earnings and promotion opportunities, and over one in five said it led to early retirement.

The government has reduced the number of NHS targets to focus on the most pressing issues. The Department for Health and Social Care is asking the NHS to prioritise:

• Reducing waiting times for operations, A&E and ambulances

• Improving access to GPs and dentists

• Enhancing mental health support

This focus is expected to result in earlier cancer diagnoses for around 60,000

women, faster treatment for over 200,000, and fewer women waiting 12 hours in A&E.

In light of this, I would appreciate your response to the following:

1. What is the ICB doing to improve women’s access to healthcare in Lichfield, Burntwood and the Villages?

2. What steps are being taken to improve awareness of available healthcare services for women?

3. What measures are in place to improve the quality of care and address inequalities in health outcomes based on age, sexuality, disability and ethnicity?

Kind regards, 

Dave Robertson MP 

Lichfield, Burntwood and the Villages