• CQC have published a report Safety, equity and engagement in maternity services which acknowledges the good and safe care provided by many maternity services in England as well as where improvements are needed.
• Our response highlights the significant challenges services face, including increased complexity of care and concerning workforce gaps across the sector.
• We are calling for a move away from a blame culture in the NHS towards more proactive approaches to safety.

Responding to the publication of CQC's Safety, equity and engagement in maternity services report, the deputy chief executive of NHS Providers, Saffron Cordery said:

"Trust leaders will welcome this report which acknowledges the good and safe care provided by many maternity services while highlighting where improvements are needed.

"Maternity services face an array of challenges, including a significant increase in the complexity of cases and worrying workforce gaps across midwifery and obstetric teams. It is clear more needs to be done to develop career pathways within maternity services so that we have the leadership and multidisciplinary teams with the skills, capacity and confidence needed to provide safe high quality care.

"It is also vital that we move away from the 'blame culture' so often seen in the NHS. Doing so would encourage a more proactive approach to safety and enable more open conversations around the realities of working in what is often a high risk, complex and unpredictable service. We would welcome further engagement with CQC on this approach.

"We also wholeheartedly welcome this report for shining a light on health inequalities and poorer maternity outcomes for Black and minority ethnic women, as well as the steps many trusts are taking to better tailor their services and communications. A continued focus on these issues and sharing of approaches is invaluable as we seek to make ongoing improvements to maternity services."