Cover-up of NHS maternity errors exposed in damning new Amos report 2026

Published: 26 February 2026. The English Chronicle Desk. The English Chronicle Online.

A devastating new report has revealed that many NHS maternity units are hiding serious mistakes. This investigation shows that hospitals frequently resort to a cover-up to hide their medical failures. Baroness Amos led the inquiry into the current state of maternity and neonatal services. She found that staff often falsify records to protect the reputation of their local trusts. Families who lose babies are frequently denied the honest answers they deserve from the NHS. The report highlights that negligent care creates deep emotional and psychological trauma for many grieving parents. Disputes between medical staff also have a disastrous impact on the safety of many mothers. Lady Amos noted that ethnic minority and poorer women face much worse outcomes during childbirth. Statistics show that Black women are nearly four times more likely to die in childbirth. Recent data also indicates that Asian women face a two times higher risk of mortality. These disparities are often linked to systemic racism and discrimination within the healthcare system today.

Older motherhood and rising obesity rates have made maternity care much more complex and difficult. The former Labour cabinet minister expressed deep alarm about the current state of NHS services. She concluded that the system is failing women, babies, families, and the medical staff. Lady Amos spent months talking to hundreds of families and dedicated maternity unit employees. She saw services trying to respond to pressure but failing to deliver safe patient care. Many trusts provide poor care because they fail to learn from previous maternity scandals. The report states that failing to address past errors is a source of distress. Lady Amos argued that this cycle of failure and silence must stop immediately for safety. Staff shortages currently affect every single stage of the maternity journey for expectant British mothers. Mothers-to-be face long delays for assessments by doctors and for planned caesarean section surgeries. Many women cannot have home births because there are no midwives available to help.

Antenatal appointments are often too brief to discuss the health of the mother or baby. Relentless pressure means that mothers are sent home far too early after giving birth safely. Many women cannot reach help when they phone to seek urgent medical advice after delivery. Lady Amos said it is not surprising that families report a lack of support. Her thirty-five page report excoriates NHS trusts for several major systemic and cultural failings. She accused trusts of compounding trauma by choosing secrecy over telling the truth to families. Many families felt there had been a cover-up after experiencing a tragic medical error. Trusts often resist requests for medical notes or provide heavily redacted versions of the truth. One woman waited three years for her daughter’s notes to appear out of thin air. These “magical notes” were inaccurate and contradicted the personal records kept by her own mother. The NHS should not have a cloak and dagger approach to private medical records.

Lady Amos is still undertaking her independent investigation into neonatal services across the country. She heard how some trusts ban families from being involved in their own investigations. Many inquiries into medical errors are of poor quality and do not reflect reality. Distressed families are often forced to take legal action to find the actual truth. This happens when they are denied honesty in the aftermath of harm or bereavement. Some hospitals also fail to treat grieving families with any compassion or basic respect. Paul Whiteing is the chief executive of the patient safety charity Action against Medical Accidents. He said the evidence shows shocking lengths to hide or falsify important medical records. This cover-up behavior shows the scale of the challenge facing the entire NHS today. Mr. Whiteing hears similar accounts of secrecy and manipulation of records on a regular basis. Defensive behaviors cause additional distress to families already struggling with deep grief and pain.

Refusal to be transparent stops the NHS from learning from its many safety lapses. Health Secretary Wes Streeting commissioned the Amos inquiry after a series of massive hospital scandals. These scandals occurred in East Kent, Leeds, Morecambe Bay, Nottingham, and the Shropshire region. The cost of settling negligence lawsuits is currently soaring to record levels for the government. The Nottingham inquiry alone covers two thousand and five hundred cases of alleged poor care. This is the biggest maternity inquiry in the history of the National Health Service. A separate inquiry into the maternity care provided in Leeds is also currently underway. Staff told Lady Amos that public scrutiny is now incredibly intense for many midwives. Some midwives hide their name badges in public to avoid being identified by others. Others lie about their jobs when they meet people outside of their clinical work. MP Layla Moran said it is heartbreaking to hear stories of families failed.

Ms. Moran chairs the Commons health and social care committee and wants immediate changes now. She urged ministers to start improvements without waiting for the final report to be finished. The final recommendations from Lady Amos are due to be published in a few months. Helen Morgan is the health spokesperson for the Liberal Democrats and she is angry. She mentioned collapsing ceilings in units and the rising number of injuries and deaths. Ms. Morgan asked how much more suffering the government will permit before they finally act. She believes Wes Streeting should apologise for the failure to end this ongoing scandal. The Liberal Democrats claim the situation is little better than under the previous Conservative government. Mr. Streeting said the report lays bare systematic and recurring failures across the entire country. He thanked the families who shared their harrowing stories about their experiences in the NHS. The Health Secretary expressed his deep admiration for the strength of these grieving parents.

He will soon launch a new taskforce to draw up an action plan for maternity. This taskforce will aim to overhaul care based on the final recommendations from Amos. The goal is to ensure that no other family has to endure such trauma. However, many campaigners feel that a cover-up culture is deeply embedded in the system. They argue that transparency is the only way to save lives in the future. Without honest reporting, the same mistakes will continue to happen in every local hospital. The public deserves to know that they are safe when they enter a ward. Statistics from 2024 showed that 67 percent of maternity units were not meeting safety standards. This figure has remained stubbornly high despite various government promises to fix the broken system. Families are now calling for a statutory duty of candour for all medical staff. They believe this will help prevent a cover-up when something goes wrong during birth.

The emotional toll on families cannot be measured in simple numbers or financial settlements. Every avoided tragedy represents a life that could have been lived happily and healthily. Lady Amos continues her work to ensure the voices of the victims are heard. Her report serves as a stark reminder of the work that still needs doing. The UK government must prioritize the safety of mothers and babies above all other concerns. Providing adequate staffing levels is the first step toward creating a much safer environment. Training staff to communicate with honesty and empathy is also a vital part of reform. As the investigation continues, the eyes of the nation remain on the Health Secretary. People want to see real change and an end to the culture of silence. Only then can the NHS begin to rebuild the trust it has lost. The families affected by these errors will not rest until they see justice served. They want to make sure that their pain leads to a better future.

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