Maternity shake-up plans for Shropshire heading to public consultation

Health bosses at Telford & Wrekin Clinical Commissioning Group have approved proposals to send to public consultation.

However, the governance board has requested an amendment be made to the proposed model.

Under the new proposals, women will no longer be able to give birth at three of the county's rural maternity units.

Instead women will be able to give birth at the consultant-led unit at Princess Royal Hospital in Telford, at the hospital's neighbouring midwife-led unit at PRH, at a free-standing midwife-led unit at Royal Shrewsbury Hospital or at home.

The new policy states that a community team will be available 24/7 for midwife led births in the midwife-led units and at home.

A series of maternity hubs would also be created to support women before and after birth.

Telford & Wrekin CCG approved taking the plans out to public consultation during a meeting yesterday, but it is with the understanding that there will be up to five maternity hubs across the county and their locations are yet to be determined.

Shropshire CCG will have to agree to the amendment before a public consultation, which is expected to last eight weeks, can begin.

It comes despite campaigners calling for births to continue at the rural units in Ludlow, Bridgnorth and Oswestry as well as at hospitals in Telford and Shrewsbury.

During yesterday's meeting, Fiona Ellis, programme manager, Shropshire, Telford and Wrekin local maternity system, gave a presentation of the proposals to the governance board.

She explained: "The review started because concerns were raised both by the public in relation to midwife led units being closed at short notice, and also by Shrewsbury & Telford Hospitals NHS Trust in the difficulties of staffing the maternity services as a whole."

She said the proposed model was that there would be five maternity hubs across the county which will be available for at least 12 hours a day.

She said the hubs would offer a broad range of services.

However concerns were raised by Liz Noakes, assistant director for health and wellbeing, who asked where the hubs would be and said having just one in Telford and Wrekin would not be sufficient.

She said they may be difficult to access for some people.

Ahead of the meeting, health campaigners had written to the CCG.

The letter, signed by Gill George, from Shropshire Defend Our NHS; Liz Grayston; Alison Hiles and Bobby Brown – from campaigns to save the rural maternity units, said: "The service you are being asked to approve today is not about better care for any women or babies in our area.

"Rural women in Shropshire lose most, but there are no winners in a service design driven by cost-cutting rather than best practice."