Homerton hospital management have taken the decision to suspend full intrapartum care by the Homebirth team under the guise of being unable to provide “safe care”.  This means they will continue antenatal and postnatal care but not support births out of hospital.  Effective immediately.

They have sited examples of patients under the care of the team declining medical interventions and care (as is their legal right under Human Rights law) and spurious and unsupported concerns around documentation. 

Over the last 15 years the Homerton homebirth team have supported hundreds of births and have provided incredibly safe, supportive and truly holistic midwifery care, advocating for and centring women and birth people.  They are a vital part of the childbirth community of East London. 

There are currently fifteen people under the care of the homebirth team plus more under caseloads with a staff of six expertly trained, experienced midwifes.  Stating “unsafe care” simply does not add up.  We believe this will put pressure on ambulance services, who are not experts in birth and make conditions much more unsafe. 

Fundamentally, we believe this is a ruse by the management of Homerton Hospital Maternity to strip women and birthing people of their  choice, control & bodily autonomy and further prioritise the medicalisation of birth with all of the potential for iatrogenic harm that so requently entails.

We also believe this is a cost saving exercise, although we’d really love to compare this with a full breakdown of how much a hospital birth costs the NHS  - intra and postpartum.

As per birthrights.org “All NHS Trusts are expected to run a home birth service. This is not guaranteed in law, but the law says that it is our right to choose where to give birth should only be restricted when there is a good reason to do this, and where the decision is ‘proportionate’.”  We do not believe that this decision is proportionate.

We believe the hospital is failing in its duty to provide the services it has promised.

Please sign the petition to save this vital service. 

We would also love you to share your thoughts and experiences with the Homerton homebirth team with the following…

E.salway1@nhs.net - Head of Community

Breeda.mcmanus1@nhs.net - Chief Nurse at Homerton

Gina.short@nhs.net - Director of Midwifery

Sarah.espenhahn1@nhs.net - Head of the MNVP

Cityhackneymnvp@gmail.com - The MNVP email address

hackneyhomebirth@gmail.com - The support group for Homebirths in Hackney