The death rate for mothers is rising - Government must act now on maternity safety

As we demanded when MBRRACE-UK data was released last year, the Government must urgently review its approach to maternity safety across the UK.

Today’s MBRRACE-UK Saving Lives, Improving Mothers’ Care State of the Nation Surveillance Report explores the cause of UK maternal deaths across 2019-2021.  

The report shows shocking disparities for women and birthing people of different ethnicities and from areas of deprivation.

It also shows that a UK-wide mental health crisis and lack of resources and care to address it is behind almost 40% of maternal deaths.

Across 2019-21, 241 women died in the UK during or up to 6 weeks after pregnancy. A further 311 women died between 6 weeks and 12 months after the end of pregnancy.

Women from Black ethnic backgrounds remain 4 times more likely to die during or after pregnancy, and women from Asian ethnic backgrounds are twice as likely to die, compared to White women.  

Disappointingly, earlier this year the Government refused to commit to setting targets to reduce Black maternal deaths.  

We believe that a strong commitment to reducing disparities in pregnancy and baby loss for women and birthing people of different ethnicities must be a priority, and setting a clear target for change is the best way to measure progress.

Covid-19 was the leading cause of death among pregnant women over 2019-2021 and over half of women were Black or Asian: the pandemic further exposed inequalities.

12% of women who died during or up to a year after pregnancy had multiple severe disadvantages, such as histories of substance abuse or domestic violence, and women living in the most deprived areas continue to have the highest maternal mortality rate compared to those living in the least deprived areas.

There was also a slight increase in the number of women dying from pre-eclampsia compared to last year’s report, which showed that 4 times as many women in the UK had died from pre-eclampsia than in 2012-14. This is despite advances in pre-eclampsia testing and diagnosis made in recent years. We know that with careful monitoring and management many of those deaths would have been avoidable.  

Worryingly, the figures detailed in the MBRRACE-UK report are from before the cost-of-living crisis of 2022-23 and before we can see and understand the impact it is having on the mental and physical health of pregnant women and people, or their babies.

This report shows that inequality and disadvantage continue to impact pregnant women and people’s care and outcomes. At Tommy’s we believe that everyone, no matter who they are or where they live, deserves to receive safe, personalised care throughout pregnancy, birth and the postnatal period.

Tommy’s Chief Executive Kath Abrahams says:

“The UK is in a mental health crisis and there appears to be no commitment from the Government to address it. Millions of people across the country are not getting the vital help they need.

“As today’s shocking report shows, the result of this absence of care before, during and after pregnancy is hundreds of children growing up without a mother.

“The maternal mortality rate continues to increase despite the repeated and increasingly desperate calls - from parents, midwives and other health professionals, and organisations in the pregnancy and baby sector - for the Government to take action to improve care and services. The quality of care given to pregnant women and people in the UK is not improving – it is getting worse.

“The Government must prioritise investment in perinatal mental health services and take meaningful action to bridge the gaps causing inequity if we are to have a chance at reducing these rising numbers.  

“We must listen to people with lived experience, engage with communities, and collaborate with organisations which work with and represent marginalised groups if we are to have any hope of tackling the huge disparities which currently exist in maternity care.”