New independent maternity working group to oversee Maternity Transformation Programme in England
A new independent maternity working group, one of the key Immediate and Essential Actions (IEAs) from the Ockenden review of maternity safety, has met for the first time. The group, which is co-chaired by Gill Walton, Chief Executive of the Royal College of Midwives (RCM), and Dr Eddie Morris, President of the Royal College of […]
RCM members in England and Wales to be balloted on industrial action over pay
RCM members working in the NHS in England and Wales are set to be formally balloted on industrial action over pay. This follows a consultation in which RCM members overwhelmingly rejected their governments’ pay awards of £1400 for most Agenda for Change NHS staff. The amount equates to a 4% increase for those at the […]
Isle of Man maternity strategy needed urgently to improve safety, care and choice for women says RCM
The Royal College of Midwives (RCM) is today setting out the case for a review of maternity services and the development of a maternity strategy for the Isle of Man. Currently the island has no overarching strategy for maternity care and the island does not have many of the resources – such as consultant midwives […]
Date set to ballot midwives on industrial action in Scotland
The Royal College of Midwives (RCM) in Scotland has today announced the date it will ballot its members on industrial action. The four-week ballot will open on 29 September and run until 27 October. The announcement comes as midwives, maternity support workers (MSWs) and maternity care assistants (MCAs) overwhelmingly rejected the Scottish Government’s pay offer of […]
RCM announces date to ballot members in Scotland on industrial action
All RCM members working in the NHS in Scotland are set to be balloted on industrial action. A statutory ballot will launch on 29 September and run for four weeks until 27 October This follows an indicative survey of midwives, maternity support workers (MSWs) and maternity care assistants (MCAs) in which almost 90 percent of […]
How to stand up for high standards
Standing up for high standards, can sometimes mean speaking out on culture and practices around you, speaking truth to power and sometimes making yourself unpopular. As a member of a trade union, we know it is important for individuals to be heard and collective action to take place. Speaking out for positive change is the […]
RCM and RCOG cut through food in pregnancy myths in new guide for women
An easy and quick guide for women on healthy eating and vitamin supplements in pregnancy(has been published by the Royal College of Midwives (RCM) and the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (RCOG). The guide explains the benefits of health eating for women and their babies. It also addresses the myths around what you should […]
RCM activists secure staff mileage rate increase at Birmingham trust
As petrol prices and the cost of living remain high, RCM activists at Birmingham Women’s NHS Trust have gained an increased mileage rate allowance for staff. Community midwives and maternity support workers using their cars for work at the trust were seeing their income fall as they paid more for rising petrol prices. Yet they […]
This is ‘at best foolish and at worst negligent’ says RCM responding to reports of a speech by the Health Secretary
Responding to the Health Secretary’s speech to Policy Exchange, as reported in this morning’s Times, Birte Harlev-Lam, Executive Director Midwife at the Royal College of Midwives, said: “To suggest that maternity services should be deprioritised by the NHS at a time when countless reports have referenced a lack of Government investment and attention is at […]
Asymptomatic testing
By Director of Employment Relations Alice Sorby on 31 August 2022 NHS MSWs – Maternity Support Workers Safety Maternity Safety Covid-19 covid-19 Following the Government’s announcement to pause asymptomatic testing for COVID, RCM Director of Employment Relations Alice Sorby shares the RCM position along with workplace support and the employer’s legal duty to your health, […]