Improvements in the care of mums, pregnant people, babies and families at University Hospitals of Morecambe Bay NHS Foundation Trust (UHMBT) are highlighted in the results of the 2025 Maternity Survey by the Care Quality Commission (CQC).
The Trust’s survey results - which feature the views of mums, pregnant people and families - are now available and can be viewed on this link.
UHMBT has been ranked fourth nationally among 55 participating organisations for overall positive score and most individual survey questions showed either stability or improvement for mums, pregnant people and families.
Compared to 2024, UHMBT made notable strides in areas that matter deeply to people, particularly regarding communication, emotional support and postnatal care.
The results reflect UHMBT’s Maternity Strategy which aims to empower women, pregnant people, families and practitioners to have safe, effective maternity services based on positive outcomes and mutually respectful relationships.
UHMBT outperformed the Maternity Survey average in several key areas. For example, 90% of respondents said they weren’t left alone when worried during labour, compared to 77% nationally. Information provision was another strength: 94% felt they had enough information about where to have their baby, well above the 84% average.
The survey captured the experiences of 105 women who gave birth at UHMBT between 22 April and 15 July 2025. It explored care provided before birth (antenatal), during labour and delivery and in the six to eight-week period following birth (postnatal).
It found that UHMBT’s results were better than most trusts for 4 questions, somewhat better than most trusts for 3 questions, the same as most trusts for 50 questions and worse than most trusts for 0 questions.
The feedback highlights the following:
- 98% of women said they were treated with respect and dignity during labour and birth.
- 98% felt involved enough in decisions about their care during labour and birth.
- 95% had confidence and trust in UHMBT staff during labour and birth.
These figures represent a 2% improvement compared to 2024.
The survey reveals positive trends in antenatal care, with 100% of respondents saying they had enough time to ask questions during antenatal check-ups. It shows that 94% felt midwives and doctors worked well together during labour and birth and 86% felt able to ask questions afterwards about labour and birth – up from 75% in 2024.
During labour and birth, more mothers said they felt reassured and supported. The percentage who said they were not left alone when worried jumped from 81% to 90% and more felt able to ask questions afterwards; up from 75% to 86%. Pain management also saw a boost, with 89% saying UHMBT colleagues did everything they could to help, compared to 84% the previous year.
While most scores improved or remained high, some areas saw a slight decline with 62% saying they felt they saw the midwife as much as they wanted postnatally (down from 76%) and 79% felt midwives were aware of their medical history postnatally (down from 88%).
Susan Foyle, Director of Midwifery, UHMBT, said: “Our results show there has been meaningful improvement, especially in emotional support, communication and postnatal care in our Maternity Services. This is a testament to our colleagues’ commitment to listening, learning and acting on what matters most to mums, pregnant people and families.
“It is reassuring that our survey results demonstrate the improvements we are making in terms of respecting people’s dignity during labour and birth as well as keeping women, pregnant people and families informed and giving them a choice about their care and the care of their baby.
“It is incredibly positive to see that our figures are improving. Of course, there are areas to watch. Access to postnatal midwives and timely discharge from hospital saw some declines and a few scores dipped slightly below the average. However, these were isolated and did not detract from the broader picture of progress. We will continue to focus on areas for improvement to ensure excellent maternity care and services for families in Morecambe Bay.”
Lynne Wyre, Interim Chief Nursing Officer, UHMBT, said: “It is great to hear this feedback about our maternity services from the women and pregnant people who use our services. We are very grateful to everyone who completed the survey for sharing their valuable feedback.
“Our teams have worked incredibly hard to improve our Maternity Services and although there is still work to be done, we remain deeply committed to further enhancing the care provided to families.”
Survey background
The Maternity Survey runs every year. All eligible organisations in England are required to conduct the survey. The online survey was available in nine non-English languages and included accessibility settings.
- The national Maternity Survey results are on this link.
- Patients were sent reminders to complete via SMS as well as post. A fourth reminder was introduced for the first time Materials such as letters and the multilanguage sheet were updated to reflect the new methodology.
- As an approved survey contractor, Picker worked with 56 organisations on the Maternity Survey 2025. This report shows UHMBT’s results in comparison to the average of those organisations (the “Picker Average”) and its performance historically.
- The overall response rate at UHMBT was 35.23%, with 105 completed surveys out of 300 invited participants.
- The questionnaire used for the Maternity Survey 2025 was developed by the CQC and their Survey Coordination Centre. The CQC have comprehensive guidelines on which patients must be included in the survey, available on this link.
- A copy of the questionnaire can be found here.