What is being done and why
Nationally
NHS England’s Three-Year Delivery Plan for Maternity and Neonatal Services (2023-2026)
The central strategy to reduce infant mortality and improve maternity outcomes that focuses on:
- Listening to and working with women and families with compassion.
- Growing and supporting the workforce (midwives, neonatal nurses, etc.).
- Creating a culture of safety, learning, and support.
- Implementing standards and structures for safer, more equitable care.
Key goals:
- Halving stillbirth, neonatal death and brain injury rates by 2025 (from 2010 levels).
- Reducing preterm birth rates.
- Addressing inequalities in outcomes, especially in deprived areas.
Regionally
The North East and North Cumbria ICS supports the national strategy through:
- Local Maternity and Neonatal Systems (LMNS): Delivering personalised, safe maternity care.
- Targeted smoking cessation programmes for pregnant women.
- Enhanced surveillance for fetal growth and preterm birth in high-risk areas.
- Community-based midwifery teams in deprived neighbourhoods.
The region has been part of pilot projects to improve digital maternity records and continuity of carer models.
Locally
The 0-19 Children’s Public Health Service delivers an integrated prevention and early help service through locality teams. They work with a range of partner organisations in each locality to deliver at the 4 levels of intervention recommended by existing national guidance i.e. community, universal services, universal plus and universal partnership plus. The first three reviews outlined in the Healthy Child Programme contribute to achieving the goal of reducing infant mortality.
Health Visitors and Midwives deliver the Pregnancy Birth and Beyond course in partnership with new parents
Child Death Review Panel
A multidisciplinary group of professionals responsible for reviewing all child deaths (excluding stillbirths and terminations) to identify lessons that can help prevent future fatalities. The panel examines relevant information, considers the wellbeing of surviving children in the household, and provides recommendations to appropriate agencies to improve safeguarding and support systems.