At least 55 babies who did not survive childbirth could have been saved with better care, investigation into new NHS maternity unit scandal finds
The deaths of at least 55 babies could have been avoided with better maternity care, an investigation into a scandal-hit NHS trust has found.
In the cases, which span a five-year period between 2019 and 2023, University Hospitals Sussex NHS Foundation Trust (UH Sussex) said different treatment ‘may’ or was ‘likely’ to have led to a better outcome.
Meanwhile, a review of nine stillbirths in 2021 and 2022 found missed opportunities to save the babies.
An analysis of clinical negligence payments also shows that the trust paid out £103.8million for maternity errors between 2021 and 2025.
This includes £34.3million shelled out in 2024/25, the highest amount in England that year.
The revelations come after Health Secretary Wes Streeting announced an independent investigation into maternity care at UH Sussex last June.
This review was only set to examine nine cases at the clinic but this has since been expanded to 15 families, including two babies both called Felix.
Pictured: Katie Fowler who lost her daughter Abigail in 2022 due to poor care at the trust
Pictured: Robert Miller and Katie Fowler whose daughter Abigail, died two days after being born at the Royal Sussex County Hospital
An independent investigation revealed midwives only spoke to Ms Fowler over the phone and had twice missed chances to bring her in for assessment
A joint investigation by the BBC and the New Statesman has now identified at least eight other families who have serious concerns about the trust’s maternity services.
Devastated mothers have spoken out about coping with the deaths of their babies while under the care of UH Sussex.
Katie Fowler, who lost her daughter Abigail in 2022, said: ‘The trust does a good job of persuading people that nothing could have been done.
‘I think there will be cases where parents may not realise that their child could have been saved.’
Ms Fowler now coordinates Truth for Our Babies, a group set up by bereaved parents concerned about standards at UH Sussex.
Her daughter Abigail died 48 hours after being born by emergency C-section in a hospital reception area as she went into cardiac arrest.
An independent investigation revealed midwives only spoke to Ms Fowler over the phone and had twice missed chances to bring her in for an assessment.
They also failed to call an emergency ambulance when her condition deteriorated.
An inquest in November 2023 tragically found that Abigail would have survived if Ms Fowler had gone into hospital sooner.
The couple had phoned the maternity unit at the Royal Sussex County Hospital, Brighton, four times on January 21, 2022, after Ms Fowler went into labour on her due date. Two calls reported blood loss.
But they were told to remain at home until after their fourth call at 7pm. At that point, Mr Miller said his wife had gone pale with blue lips and was struggling to breathe.
An inquest in November 2023 found that tragically found that Abigail would have survived if Ms Fowler had gone into hospital sooner. Pictured: Abigail’s father Robert Miller
The Princess Royal Hospital in Haywards Heath, West Sussex
But midwives said it was probably a panic attack and told the couple to make their own way to hospital.
In fact, Ms Fowler had massive internal bleeding caused by a uterine rupture (a rare complication where the womb tears). The blood loss caused her heart to stop as their taxi arrived at the hospital.
Doctors rushed to perform emergency surgery on Ms Fowler and created a resuscitation area on two chairs to try to stabilise Abigail.
Ms Fowler survived after two days in a coma and was able to meet her daughter but Abigail died in her parents’ arms later that day.
Beth Cooper also lost her baby Felix after he was born at Princess Royal Hospital in Haywards Heath, one of four hospitals the trust operates.
She said in the week leading up to his birth, she went into the hospital on three consecutive days, reporting reduced movements of her baby.
Ms Cooper said that it ‘was really obvious’ to her that something was not right but she was dismissed by staff.
‘I think the most common theme I found with the staff was “is this your first baby? Oh, you’re just anxious,”‘ she claimed.
Tragically, by the time she went back to the hospital for the fourth time, doctors could not find Felix’s heartbeat and she was told that he had died.
Mother Robyn Davis lost her baby Orlando at one of the hospitals run by UH Sussex 2021 – and findings of ‘neglect’ were revealed in an inquest
Meanwhile another mother, Sophie Hartley, said she lost her child after she discharged a dark substance which she thought was meconium, a baby’s first stool.
This poses a risk of leading to breathing difficulties if it is passed before birth.
Ms Hartley claims that she was forced to call the Princess Royal Hospital ‘at least 30 times’ before she managed to get through to someone on the phone.
And when she did go in for a check-up, she said her baby was not monitored and she was sent home.
Ms Hartley then went into labour at around 2.30am the following morning, before going into the hospital at 7am.
Staff struggled to find her baby’s heartbeat and after several delays he was delivered via emergency C-section.
The baby, who was also called Felix, was not breathing and he died the following day.
Mother Robyn Davis also lost her baby Orlando at one of the hospitals run by UH Sussex 2021 – and findings of ‘neglect’ were revealed in an inquest.
Orlando died at Worthing Hospital after maternity staff failed to realise that his mother had developed hyponatremia – a rare fluid imbalance – during labour.
An inquest found that his death in September 2021 was ‘contributed to by neglect’.
A spokesperson for UH Sussex said its mortality rates for the past three years were ‘markedly below national rates’.
It added that its goal was to ‘provide the safest possible maternity care’.
The Daily Mail has contacted the trust for further comment.
