Maternity services

About 600,000 babies are born each year to women receiving their maternity care in NHS services in England. The actual experiences and views of women who have recently given birth can be used to inform and improve care, and services overall, both nationally and locally.

Review of maternity services 2007

Our review explored how organisations in the NHS are improving the way in which they deliver maternity services.

More information about the review of maternity services 2007

Survey of maternity services in NHS trusts

During the summer of 2007, the Healthcare Commission carried out a survey of maternity services within the national programme of surveys about the experiences of NHS patients.

The survey was carried out in 151 trusts (149 acute trusts and two PCTs) that provide maternity services across England. Questionnaires were sent to almost 45,000 women to ask them about their experiences of maternity care. Over 26,000 women took part, a response rate of 59%.

The questionnaire used in the survey was based on that used in the National Maternity Survey 2006, developed and carried out by the National Perinatal and Epidemiology Unit (NPEU):
NPEU: National Maternity Surveys (opens new window)

The 2007 trust-based survey was designed to complement the 2006 national survey by assessing individual trusts’ performances. Data from the survey will provide information about women’s views and experiences, which can be used by those who commission and provide services, to help identify areas that require improvement.

The questionnaire covered each of the three main stages in maternity care: during pregnancy (antenatal care), during labour and delivery and after the birth (postnatal care).

Maternity survey questionnaire (pdf 103kb) (opens new window)

Maternity services review 2007

The results from the 2007 survey will be used in the Healthcare Commission’s Maternity Services Review, which will assess the quality, capability and efficiency of maternity services.

Find out more about the Healthcare Commissions Maternity services Review

Results of the survey

Although 151 trusts providing maternity services took part in the survey, the published results are based on 148 trusts. This is explained in the appendix to the key findings and in the guidance section of the tables below.

Read our summary of the national results:
Women's experiences of maternity care in the NHS in England: Key findings (pdf 905kb) (opens new window)

Press release: 27 November 2007

You can download tables showing the overall results for England and for each trust that participated in the survey. These results have been standardised to take into account the age and parity (previous pregnancy) of respondents, which may vary across trusts. More information on this is available in the guidance section of the tables below.

When comparing results between trusts, it is important to note that responsibility for different parts of maternity care varies considerably across the country. Although, for convenience, the samples of women were drawn from acute trust records, comparatively few of the questions can be attributed unequivocally to one trust type or another. For example, antenatal care can be provided by PCTs or acute trusts. This means that women responding to the survey may have received their antenatal care in a different trust from that where they gave birth. Further information may be found in the guidance section of the tables.

Section A: Dates and your babies (xls 158kb) (opens new window)

Section B: The start of your care in pregnancy (xls 306kb) (opens new window)

Section B: Antenatal check-ups (xls 220kb) (opens new window)

Section B: Tests and scans (xls 214kb) (opens new window)

Section B: During your pregnancy (xls 273kb) (opens new window)

Section C: Your labour and the birth of your baby (xls 284kb) (opens new window)

Section C: The birth of your baby (xls 259kb) (opens new window)

Section C: The staff caring for you (xls 368kb) (opens new window)

Section D: Babies born at home (xls 88kb) (opens new window)

Section E: Care in hospital after birth (xls 375kb) (opens new window)

Section F: Feeding your baby (xls 197kb) (opens new window)

Section G: Babies needing special care (xls 183kb) (opens new window)