Source · Select Committees · Women and Equalities Committee
Recommendation 4
4
Accepted
Paragraph: 43
It is unclear how the Equity and Equality guidance will be implemented and monitored.
Recommendation
It is unclear how the Equity and Equality guidance will be implemented and monitored. In response to this report, NHS England should set out their approach for assessing and monitoring the strategies of local maternity services. The Government should also provide clear timescales for the roll-out of the maternal morbidity indicator.
Government response summary AI-generated
NHS England has reviewed local maternity systems' equity and equality action plans and will require all LMNSs to publish their plans by 31 March 2024, while also monitoring relevant data and providing regional and national support.
Summary of the government's response below — read the verbatim text to verify.
Paragraph Reference:
43
Government Response
Accepted
HM Government · verbatim extract
Accepted
20. The Equity & Equality Guidance for LMNS asked local maternity systems to publish equity and equality action plans. Every LMNS has produced a plan which has been reviewed by NHS England. The review identified good practice and what further support is needed to improve equity and equality. All LMNS’ will publish their equity and equality action plan by 31 March 2024, as set out in the Delivery Plan. 21. ICS are responsible for assuring implementation of LMNS equity and equality action plans, in line with the recommendations of the Hewitt Review 5 and NHS England’s operating framework 6 . 22. As set out in the Delivery Plan, NHS England will: provide regional and national support for the implementation of LMNS equity and equality action plans; monitor at national level: CQC maternity survey data by ethnicity and deprivation data about maternal mortality, stillbirths, neonatal mortality, brain injury (during or soon after birth) and preterm birth by ethnicity and deprivation CQC maternity survey data by ethnicity and deprivation data about maternal mortality, stillbirths, neonatal mortality, brain injury (during or soon after birth) and preterm birth by ethnicity and deprivation 23. In examining these data, the NHS recognises that the social determinants of health, the conditions in which people are born, grow, live, work and age and inequities in power, money and resources are a significant driver of health inequalities. This emphasises the importance of the role played by the Maternity Disparities Taskforce in bringing together experts from across the health system, government departments and the voluntary sector to address health inequalities (as described in paragraph 8).
Read the full response on Parliament ↗