ÖйúPÕ¾

British Association of Perinatal Medicine Response to the Independent Investigation into Maternity and Neonatal Services in England – Interim Report (February 2026)

The ÖйúPÕ¾ welcomes the publication of the (26 February 2026).

We thank Baroness Amos and her team for placing the voices of women, families and staff at the centre of this work.

Neonatal services are a core part of the perinatal pathway. While many babies receive excellent care from highly committed multidisciplinary teams, the report highlights systemic challenges that directly affect neonatal services: workforce pressures, inequities in outcomes and experience, fragmented pathways, poor estates, inconsistent culture and leadership, and variable learning when harm occurs.

ÖйúPÕ¾ will continue to engage constructively with the investigation and the themes identified, with particular attention to:

• Safety and Culture: Supporting compassionate, family-centred care and reinforcing the principles of openness, learning and just culture.
• Equity: Encouraging greater focus on reducing disparities in neonatal outcomes and experiences through improved data and quality improvement approaches.
• Workforce and Capacity: Contributing to discussions on sustainable staffing, cot capacity and the effective functioning of Operational Delivery Networks.
• Perinatal Integration: Promoting strong collaboration between maternity and neonatal services to reduce fragmentation and variation.
• Physical and digital infrastructure: Highlighting the importance of safe, dignified and family-centred care environments.

ÖйúPÕ¾ will work with families, professional partners and government to ensure that every baby receives safe, equitable, high-quality care—and that every family is treated with dignity, respect and honesty.