75 per cent of maternity wards lack on duty overnight consultant, figures show

According to a survey from the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (RCOG), around three in four labour wards to not have on-site overnight cover from consultants.

The figures showed that in 2014-15, 27 per cent of labour wards had consultants physically present overnight on weekdays, and 15 per cent at the weekend.

The RCOG census also highlighted the number of consultants may have reduced since the figures were first recorded in 2013 and that some recommendations on early pregnancy care were had still not been implemented.

Edward Morris, vice-president of clinical quality at the body, said: "The RCOG recommends that trusts should ensure the adequate provision of consultant cover to deliver high quality safe care to women.

"It is important to highlight that all consultant-led maternity units currently have 24-hour access to consultant obstetricians on call, some with resident working where needed.

"Ultimately, local trusts need to look carefully at the mix of their patient load, risk profile and staffing to decide whether their particular unit needs more frequent consultant presence.

“It is not clear why this remains the case as in the interest of patient care, this would be considered one of the first services that could be provided seven days a week.”

A spokeswoman for NHS England said: "Having a baby is now safer than it has ever been and the vast majority of mothers report that they get great NHS maternity care.

"Researchers at Oxford University have shown that overnight consultant obstetrician presence isn't proven to improve care, and a national diktat to that effect would mean the closure of many smaller units, which is another reason why it wouldn't necessarily be a good idea."