Gloucestershire to resume home births before Christmas

Summarised from 2 outlets · Updated 15 Oct, 06:32 · Archive

Gloucestershire's home birth service is expected to restart before Christmas after being suspended last year.

Home births in Gloucestershire are expected to resume before Christmas, the NHS trust has announced. The Aveta Birth Centre in Cheltenham has been closed temporarily since 2022 due to staff shortages and safety concerns. The home birth service across the county was suspended in November last year after staff raised safety concerns.

Gloucestershire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust said in May that progress had been made but more work was needed to reopen safely. The latest Care Quality Commission report, published last month, rated the trust as 'good'—an improvement from 2022's 'requires improvement'—and recognised the trust is 'certainly on the right path with maternity'. However, the report identified areas needing improvement including maternity triage, incident management and aspects of leadership governance. It also noted increased pressure on maternity staff.

There is frustration among councillors that no specific date has been set to reopen the Cheltenham birth unit. Al Sheward, deputy chief executive of the trust, acknowledged at a county council meeting on 13 October that the trust has 'got a lot of work still to do'. By contrast, Stroud Maternity Hospital was rated as improving to 'good' across all five domains of the inspectorate assessment.

How it is being reported

• Home births to resume before Christmas, trust saysHome births were temporarily suspended in Gloucestershire last year following safety concerns.BBC Gloucestershire · 15 Oct, 06:15
• Home births to resume before Christmas but still no date to reopen Cheltenham maternity unitThe Aveta Birth Centre has been closed since April 2022 while home births were suspended last yearGloucestershire Live · 15 Oct, 06:00

In this story: Gloucestershire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust · Cheltenham General Hospital · Aveta Birth Centre · Care Quality Commission · Gloucestershire · Stroud Maternity Hospital

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