NHS offers £5,100 champagne births in private wing

A London hospital is expanding private maternity care after its boss admitted the NHS could not provide "calm and tranquillity".

Chelsea and Westminster NHS foundation trust has set up a 16-bed wing offering "Rolls-Royce" treatment to fee-paying women.

As well as "hotel-style" facilities, the Kensington Wing includes one-to-one midwife support and 24-hour contact with consultants. Chelsea did have an existing private maternity wing but it only had six beds.

New mothers can expect smoked salmon for breakfast and champagne is on offer at £75 a bottle so parents can toast their offspring.

All rooms have ensuite bathrooms, televisions and fridges and there are no visiting-time restrictions.

An average stay costs from £5,100 for a normal delivery without consultant fees.

The hospital hopes to follow in the footsteps of the prestigious Lindo Wing at St Mary's Hospital in Paddington. Its 17-bed ensuite private unit is the favoured maternity unit for the royal family and has hosted the births of Princes William and Harry in 1982 and 1984. St Thomas' also has private maternity beds.

Chelsea trust chief executive Heather Lawrence told the Standard the NHS struggled to offer pregnant women a stress-free environment.

She said: "Quite a lot of women are well into their forties, professional and affluent who are risk-averse and have fertility issues. They're looking for tranquillity, calm and space which is difficult to achieve on the NHS. The quality of care is exactly the same between private and NHS. It's just a different environment.

"We're providing the Rolls-Royce end of private maternity care and the money can be used to improve services instead of going to the private sector."

Critics warned that the move could create an unfair system, with NHS patients neglected at the expense of those who can afford to pay.

A spokeswoman for health-care union Unison said: "It's outrageous to admit NHS conditions are not as good. We have a national health service and we should not get into the situation where we have a two-tier health service at the cost of NHS patients."

The amount hospital trusts can earn from private patients is capped by the Government. Surplus cash is redistributed in the NHS.

Yet this limit on private earnings could be scrapped under a proposal put down in the Lords this month by Baroness Meacher. The Kensington Wing will be the largest private maternity unit in an NHS hospital in London. It has a three star neo-natal rating, higher than any private hospital, which means it can offer acute care to babies.

Private rivals include Queen Charlotte's and the Portland. The latter has become the maternity hospital of choice for stars such as Zoe Ball and Victoria Beckham. High-profile mothers who have already given birth at the Kensington unit include author Sophie Kinsella.

Lead consultant Nick Wales said the unit offered the equivalent of a Virgin Atlantic "Upper Class" service: "We had one patient who stayed nine days because she liked it so much."

Independent v NHS: how units compare

Portland Hospital (Independent)

* Average cost: from £3,500 for a normal birth (not including consultant fees)

* Level 2 neonatal care available for sick babies

* Rooms: 30 ensuite with fridge

* Typical menu: Scottish salmon, asparagus and chervil salad

* Frills: Perrier Jouet champagne at £70 a bottle or Bollinger for £75

Chelsea & Westminster, Kensington Wing (NHS)

* Average cost: from £5,100 for a normal birth (not including consultant fees)

* Level 3 neonatal care available (higher level of care than 2)

* Rooms: 16 ensuite with fridge

* Typical menu: tarragon chicken

* Frills: champagne at £27.50 a bottle