The Best and Worst Rated NHS Maternity Units in England, According to CQC Data

According to our study, 63% of NHS maternity units in England are currently performing below standard, being rated ‘Requires Improvement’ or ‘Inadequate’ by the Care Quality Commission (CQC).

Here at Patient Claim Line, we crunched the numbers to reveal the locations with the worst rated NHS maternity units and the concerns raised by inspectors.

Key findings:

• 63% of NHS maternity units in England are performing below standard, being rated ‘Requires Improvement’ or ‘Inadequate’.
• Only 2% of NHS maternity units are rated ‘Outstanding’, which is defined as “performing exceptionally well”.
• 35% of NHS maternity units in England are ‘Good’, which means they are “performing well and meeting expectations”.
• The areas with the most maternity units that failed to meet all required standards by the CQC are London (16 maternity units), followed by Greater Manchester (8 maternity units). Greater London and North Yorkshire join with 7 maternity units, respectively.

Maternity units are assessed on five core categories: safe, effective, caring, responsive to people’s needs, and well-led. These evaluations determine their overall rating, which can be ‘Outstanding’, ‘Good’, ‘Requires Improvement’, or ‘Inadequate’. Here’s a look at the number of maternity units that fall into these rating categories:

Where are the worst rated NHS maternity units in England?

The 18 NHS maternity units in England that are rated ‘Inadequate’

Concerns raised by CQC inspectors at England’s most ‘Inadequate’ maternity units

Inspectors at Luton and Dunstable Hospital raised concerns on the maternity unit including: not always having enough staff to care for women and keep them safe; infection risk not being managed consistently; a lack of learning from incidents and staff not always checking emergency equipment in line with policy, to ensure it is ready, safe and fit for purpose.

At Musgrove Park Hospital’s maternity unit, inspectors noted that: staff were not always up to date with training and key skills, with a lack of effective oversight from leaders; women and birthing people presenting to triage were not appropriately risk assessed and prioritised based on the presenting risk and there was a lack of adequate emergency equipment across the service.

Writing about Yeovil District Hospital maternity unit, inspectors observed that: not all staff had sufficient training to recognise and understand how to protect women and birthing people from abuse and manage safety well; the service did not always have enough medical staff and there was not enough emergency equipment to safely care for babies.

The 66 NHS maternity units in England that are rated ‘Requires Improvement’

Commenting on the findings, Natalie Richardson, Solicitor at Patient Claim Line says:

“It’s disappointing to see that a high percentage of NHS maternity services are underperforming, being rated as ‘Requires Improvement’ or ‘Inadequate’ by the Care Quality Commission, with failings including a lack of staff and emergency equipment to keep people safe.”

“It’s important that maternity services provide continuous support to women and birthing people during all stages of their pregnancy, with access to skilled professionals and safe and compassionate care. Maternity services should provide clear communication to ensure that women and birthing people are well-informed, whilst taking the necessary steps to ensure their physical, mental and emotional well-being.”

If you or your baby have suffered from a traumatic birth injury due to medical negligence, you may be able to make a birth injury claim and receive compensation for your suffering. Contact our team of birth injury lawyers today on 0330 107 5325 or visit the birth injury claims page for more information.

Methodology

CQC was used to source NHS hospitals, with the service name searched as ‘maternity’. Hospital ratings of Outstanding, Good, Requires Improvement and Inadequate were collated for the maternity service, excluding any private hospitals and GP practices. This does not consider the overall rating of each hospital. Data collected in April 2025 and is subject to change.