'We felt very heard': Families involved in Leeds maternity review say Health Secretary has listened
‘I feel now like something will be done’
Families whose babies died or were harmed while under the care of maternity services in Leeds say they “felt heard” during a meeting with Health Secretary Yvette Cooper.
The meeting, held in Leeds earlier today, brought together families who have spent years campaigning for answers, accountability and improvements following concerns about services provided by Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust.
It gave the recently appointed Health Secretary Yvette Cooper an opportunity to hear directly about the impact on families and the changes they believe are needed to improve safety for mums and babies.
The independent investigation into maternity and neonatal services at Leeds Teaching Hospitals (LTH) NHS Trust was ordered by Ms Cooper’s predecessor Wes Streeting last year.
After meeting Ms Cooper, parent Rebecca Tinker said: “It went very well. We got all our points across. We felt very heard, very listened to.
“I feel now like something will be done. And I feel like it’s all now going in the right direction.”
Rebecca described how she was in labour for 84 hours in 2024 before an emergency section, and explained how her son, Frankie, was starved of oxygen for 25 minutes, leading to fears he may have brain damage.
She explained how she was not listened to in the hospital and eventually developed sepsis.
Frankie is now two and a half years old and “doing fantastic” but she was told he was “lucky to be alive”.
“There is a massive problem in maternity, and it’s a crisis,” Rebecca added. “She (Ms Cooper) is quite new to the job, but everything that we’ve got across today, she’s listened to and she understands it.
“And I do feel like her and Donna (Ockenden) working together will be a really good outcome, and people will be held responsible. And, hopefully, all the families and bereaved parents will get the answers that they deserve.”
Senior midwife and investigator Donna Ockenden, who reported earlier this year on multiple failings in maternity services in Nottingham, will chair the Leeds review.
Wednesday’s meeting follows the publication last week of terms of reference for the investigation, which confirmed that it will consider cases back as far as 2011.
The review could involve up to 3,000 cases and will consider maternity and neonatal care provided to women, babies and families, including cases involving severe harm or death.