Degree apprenticeships show promise of building the next generation of midwives

A new route into midwifery has been praised by an independent report. The report, commissioned by NHS England and the Royal College of Midwives and written by Professor Richard Griffin of King’s College London, found that registered midwifery degree apprenticeships (RMDAs) found it improved accessibility and workforce retention. The evaluation found that there were significantly […]

RCM calls for end to unpaid overtime in TUC Congress motion

RCM calls for end to unpaid overtime in TUC Congress motion The Royal College of Midwives (RCM) has called on the Government to end unpaid overtime in the NHS. Speaking to the motion, RCM workplace representative Toni Wood told the TUC Congress in Liverpool that midwives and maternity support workers (MSWs) across England give 100,000 […]

NHS England moves to offer better wellbeing support and assess staffing levels welcome says RCM

The Royal College of Midwives (RCM) has welcomed a move by NHS England (NHSE) to improve support around burnout and stress for maternity and neonatal staff. This latest move is a part of the Three year delivery plan for maternity and neonatal services published in March. NHSE has also committed to looking afresh at maternity […]

RCM call for government to ensure maternity is key plank of women’s health strategy

The Royal College of Midwives (RCM) has called on the Government to ensure that maternity care is central to its women’s health strategy, following the announcement last week of several new measures aimed at improving women’s health. Among the measures announced were the development of a new AI tool to identify early risks in maternity […]

RCM expresses concern at ‘huge drop’ in number of applications to study midwifery

RCM expresses concern at ‘huge drop’ in number of applications to study midwifery The number of students applying to study midwifery in the UK has dropped by a fifth, according to the latest UCAS figures, raising concerns about future workforce planning. Although student numbers are still around pre-pandemic levels, there continues to be a year-on-year […]

RCM calls for better support for disabled NHS staff in TUC motion

The Royal College of Midwives (RCM) says a change is needed urgently in how funds for reasonable adjustments for disabled NHS staff are allocated at Trust level. In a motion – presented by RCM activist Mandi Masters – to the TUC Disabled Workers Conference today, the RCM is calling for all NHS Trusts to have central funds […]

Maternity team call-out for NHS staff feedback on impact of staff baby loss policy

A Trust in Birmingham is asking for feedback from NHS staff who may have benefited from a policy to support staff after pregnancy loss that they introduced and pioneered two years ago. The work at Birmingham Women and Children’s NHS Foundation Trust was led by RCM workplace representative Janet Ballintine, other Trade Unions and the Trust’s Chief People Officer, Raffaela […]

RCM announces RCM Board election results

Seven new midwives and maternity support workers (MSWs) have joined the Royal College of Midwives (RCM) Board following Board elections. Three existing Board members have also been re-elected. The new Board take up their roles on 1 September 2023. The new Board members are: • Shani Woodbridge • Yana Richens • Melissa Davis • Barbara […]

Every Story Matters: RCM asks members to share their pandemic experiences

The Royal College of Midwives (RCM) is calling on its members to share their experiences of working through the COVID-19 pandemic with the Government’s official inquiry. Its call comes as the Every Story Matters listening exercise campaign to encourage health professionals and members of the public to feed into the COVID-19 inquiry is launched. The […]

RCM Research Prioritisation

The RCM is launching an exciting new project on 17 July 2023. They will be undertaking a research prioritisation project to establish the top 10 priorities for research and want all members of the midwifery profession, together with student midwives, MSWs and service users to get involved. Establishing future research priorities for maternity and midwifery […]