Mothers at risk from midwife shortage

Mothers and babies are being put at risk because government funding is not reaching midwifery departments, it has been claimed.

In January, Health Secretary Alan Johnson pledged £330million of extra money to primary care trusts between this year and 2011 to improve maternity care.

But Royal College of Midwives general secretary Professor Cathy Warwick said some midwifery departments have not received their share of the cash from PCTs, meaning they cannot hire the midwives needed to ensure every woman gets the care promised.

Professor Warwick told the Guardian: "It looks to us like in many parts of the country the money has gone to PCTs but not been released to heads of midwifery.

"On the very busy labour wards midwives are having to look after sometimes two or three women in labour and that's when the woman ends up being left alone.

"That's not only unacceptable, it's not safe."

The Government promises that by the end of next year every woman will receive one-on-one support from a midwife throughout her labour. But Professor Warwick said the cash shortage, lack of midwives and rising birth rate would lead to targets being delayed by at least two years.

A spokesman for the RCM added: "We are very supportive of what the Government is doing and the pledges but [cash] just doesn't seem to be getting through.

"We think the blockages are at a local level. The money wasn't fully ring-fenced and there was a concern that it was not being spent on maternity services."

A Department of Health spokesman said: "The extra £330 million provided for maternity is for the three years from 2008-09 to 2010-11, so we are still only in the first year of this commitment."

He added: "There are important signs of progress. There are more midwives working in the NHS than ever before.

"The latest workforce census shows we have just over 25,000 midwives for the first time. And the NHS is making good progress with plans to recruit 1,000 extra midwives by 2009."