One sentence summary – Nottingham University Hospitals (NUH) NHS Trust is under investigation for a series of baby deaths and injuries, prompting Nottinghamshire Police to launch a separate investigation, which is expected to be the largest ever carried out in the UK, focusing on the failings that resulted in the death or injury of babies at Nottingham City Hospital and the Queen’s Medical Centre, with approximately 1,800 families contacted for the investigation.
At a glance
- Nottingham University Hospitals (NUH) NHS Trust is under investigation for a series of baby deaths and injuries.
- The investigation is being conducted by senior midwife Donna Ockenden.
- Nottinghamshire Police has launched a separate investigation, expected to be the largest ever carried out in the UK.
- Approximately 1,800 families have been contacted for the investigation.
- The investigation focuses on the failings that resulted in the death or injury of babies at Nottingham City Hospital and the Queen’s Medical Centre.
The details
Nottingham University Hospitals (NUH) NHS Trust is currently under investigation for a series of baby deaths and injuries.
The review is being conducted by senior midwife Donna Ockenden.
In response to discussions with Ms Ockenden, Nottinghamshire Police has decided to launch a separate investigation.
This investigation is expected to be the largest ever carried out in the UK.
Approximately 1,800 families have been contacted for the investigation.
The investigation specifically focuses on the failings that resulted in the death or injury of babies at Nottingham City Hospital and the Queen’s Medical Centre.
Following the decision to investigate, Chief Constable Kate Meynell has appointed Assistant Chief Constable Rob Griffin to oversee the preparations and subsequent investigation.
This move follows a similar investigation by West Mercia Police into maternity practices at the Shrewsbury and Telford NHS Trust.
The previous investigation revealed that improved maternity care could have saved the lives of 201 babies and nine mothers over a 20-year period.
Nottinghamshire Police intends to hold preliminary discussions with local families affected by the cases in the near future.
The police investigation has been welcomed by campaigning parents, who plan to share their evidence with the authorities.
Jack and Sarah Hawkins, whose baby tragically died in 2016, have been advocating for a police investigation for years and are scheduled to meet with the chief constable to understand the implications of this investigation.
NUH’s chief executive, Anthony May, has publicly committed to fully cooperate with the police investigation.
The review by Donna Ockenden was initiated following a campaign by bereaved parents.
Thus far, the review team has been contacted by 1,266 families, with 674 granting consent to join the review.
The announcement of the police investigation has brought relief to families who have alleged poor maternity care and inadequate investigation of such care at NUH.
These families believe there has been a cover-up by both the trust and NHS staff.
NUH was previously ordered to make significant and immediate improvements to its maternity services.
Donna Ockenden previously led a similar review into maternity care at Shrewsbury and Telford NHS Trust.
Chief Constable Kate Meynell’s decision to launch the investigation was made after a meeting with Donna Ockenden, who is leading the Nottingham maternity inquiry.
The inquiry is set to examine 1,800 cases, potentially making it the UK’s largest-ever maternity scandal.
Families affected by the cases have welcomed the police investigation and plan to share evidence with the authorities.
To ensure the investigation benefits from the experience of the West Mercia Police investigation in Shrewsbury and Telford, the police are looking into their approach.
The initial reports of poor care over a decade, involving 61 babies, prompted the review into maternity services at Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust.
Article X-ray
Here are all the sources used to create this article:
A hospital building with a question mark hovering above it.
This section links each of the article’s facts back to its original source.
If you have any suspicions that false information is present in the article, you can use this section to investigate where it came from.
| bbc.co.uk |
|---|
| – Nottingham University Hospitals (NUH) NHS Trust is under investigation for dozens of baby deaths and injuries. – |
| The investigation is being conducted by senior midwife Donna Ockenden. – Nottinghamshire Police has decided to launch a separate investigation following discussions with Ms Ockenden. – |
| The review will be the largest ever carried out in the UK, with approximately 1,800 families contacted. |
| – The investigation focuses on failings that led to babies dying or being injured at Nottingham City Hospital and the Queen’s Medical Centre. – Chief Constable Kate Meynell has appointed Assistant Chief Constable Rob Griffin to oversee the preparations and subsequent investigation. – |
| The decision to investigate follows a similar investigation by West Mercia Police into maternity practices at the Shrewsbury and Telford NHS Trust. – |
| The independent investigation in Shrewsbury and Telford found that better maternity care could have saved the lives of 201 babies and nine mothers over a 20-year period. |
| – Nottinghamshire Police plans to hold preliminary discussions with some local families in the near future. |
| – NUH’s chief executive, Anthony May, has committed to fully cooperating with the police investigation. – |
| The review by Donna Ockenden was prompted by a campaign by bereaved parents. |
| – So far, 1,266 families have contacted the review team, with 674 giving consent to join. – |
| The announcement of the police investigation has been welcomed by campaigning parents, who plan to share their evidence with the police. – Jack and Sarah Hawkins, whose baby died in 2016, have been advocating for a police investigation for years and anticipate meeting with the chief constable to understand the implications of the investigation. |
| news.sky.com |
|---|
| – Nottinghamshire Police are preparing to launch an investigation into maternity cases at Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust. – |
| The decision came after a meeting with senior midwife Donna Ockenden to discuss her independent review. – Chief Constable Kate Meynell has appointed Assistant Chief Constable Rob Griffin to oversee the preparations and subsequent investigation. – Families affected by the cases have welcomed the news of the police investigation. – |
| The families allege poor maternity care and poor investigation of that care at NUHT for many years. |
| – They believe there has been a cover-up by both NUHT and NHS staff. – |
| The trust was ordered to make significant and immediate improvements to its maternity services. – Jack and Sarah Hawkins, who fought to prove NUHT’s errors led to the death of their stillborn daughter, are relieved at the review being launched. – |
| The Hawkins family had asked NUHT to notify the police of their daughter’s avoidable death. – NUH’s chief executive, Anthony May, has committed to fully cooperate with the police investigation. – Ms. Ockenden previously led a similar review into maternity care at Shrewsbury and Telford NHS Trust. |
| independent.co.uk |
|---|
| – Nottinghamshire Police are preparing to launch an investigation into maternity cases at Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust. – Chief Constable Kate Meynell made the decision after a meeting with Donna Ockenden, who is leading the Nottingham maternity inquiry. – |
| The inquiry is set to examine 1,800 cases, potentially making it the UK’s largest-ever maternity scandal. |
| – Families of affected babies have welcomed the police investigation and plan to share evidence with the police. – |
| The police are looking at the investigation conducted by West Mercia Police in Shrewsbury and Telford to learn from their approach. |
| – Preliminary discussions with local families will be held in the near future. |
| – The review into maternity services at Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust was initiated after The Independent uncovered poor care over a decade, involving 61 babies. |
English 
Portuguese 
Turkish 
Chinese 
German