Source · CQC inspection

Medway Maritime Hospital

Provider Medway NHS Foundation Trust Type NHS Healthcare Organisation Region South East Last inspected 28 Nov 2025

Overall rating: Requires Improvement  View full CQC report

Domain ratings

Five CQC key questions
Safe
Requires Improvement
Effective
Requires Improvement
Caring
Requires Improvement
Responsive
Requires Improvement
Well-led
Requires Improvement

Current CQC assessment

Single Assessment Framework

From 2024 CQC rates services through ongoing assessments rather than comprehensive inspections.

Requires Improvement Assessed 28 November 2025
The service is not performing as well as it should and we have told the service how it must improve.
Medway Maritime Hospital provides a range of NHS hospital services. This assessment looked at urgent and emergency services to follow up on a Warning Notice issued in April 2024, when we rated urgent and emergency services requires improvement.The rating for urgent and emergency services has been combined with the ratings of the other services from the last assessments. See our previous reports to get a full picture of all other services at Medway Maritime Hospital.The rating of Medway Maritime Hospital remains requires improvement.We found that the service did not always …

Ratings by service

Urgent and emergency services
Requires Improvement
Mar 2025
Urgent and emergency services
Requires Improvement
Nov 2024

Regulatory breaches & enforcement

Current-framework "must do" equivalent

Breaches of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2014, stated verbatim in the CQC assessment.

Warning notice Overall
This assessment looked at urgent and emergency services to follow up on a Warning Notice issued in April 2024, when we rated urgent and emergency services requires improvement.
· 28 Nov 2025 · CQC source
Warning notice Overall
We carried out this unannounced assessment of urgent and emergency services on the 29 and 30 April 2025 to review a Warning Notice issued to the trust in April 2024.
· 28 Nov 2025 · CQC source
Warning notice Overall
Following this assessment, significant improvements had been made, and the Warning Notice had been met.
· 28 Nov 2025 · CQC source
Warning notice Overall
As a result of these findings, we served a Warning Notice requiring the trust to make significant improvements to the quality of healthcare in the emergency department.
· 7 Feb 2025 · CQC source
Warning notice Overall
As a result of these findings, we served a Warning Notice requiring the trust to make significant improvements to the quality of healthcare in the emergency department.
· 27 Nov 2024 · CQC source

Breaches identified (5)

Breach Caring
The service was in breach of the legal regulations relating to dignity and respect and safe care and treatment.
Regulation: Regulation 10 (Dignity and respect) · 28 Nov 2025
Breach Overall
Improvements were found at this assessment, but the service remained in breach of these regulations.
· 28 Nov 2025
Breach Caring
The service was previously in breach of the legal regulations in relation to dignity and respect and safe care and treatment.
Regulation: Regulation 10 (Dignity and respect) · 28 Nov 2025
Breach Caring
In our assessment of urgent and emergency services we found breaches of Regulation 10, 12, 15, 17 and 18 of the Health and Social Care Act (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2014.
Regulation: Regulation 10 (Dignity and respect) · 7 Feb 2025
Breach Caring
We found breaches of Regulation 10, 12, 15, 17 and 18 of the Health and Social Care Act (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2014.
Regulation: Regulation 10 (Dignity and respect) · 27 Nov 2024

Earlier inspection findings

pre-2024 framework · 6 should-do

Should-do actions (6)

Recommended improvements to enhance service quality.

Should-do action 1 of 6
Should do
Safe
The service should have a process in place to ensure checks are made on necessary equipment in areas when the areas are not in use, to ensure they remain ready to use.
Should-do action 2 of 6
Should do
Safe
There should be sufficient CTG paper available and accessible to necessary staff at all times to ensure ongoing monitoring of babies when required.
Should-do action 3 of 6
Should do
Safe
The service should ensure, in line with trust policy, all indicated staff are trained to adult safeguarding level 3 and that staff are aware of how they can assess young women and birthing people at risk of child sexual exploitation.
Should-do action 4 of 6
Should do
Safe
The service should continue to improve staffing and recruitment to ensure a fully staffed service.
Should-do action 5 of 6
Should do
Safe
The service should follow its medication policies in the safe storage and monitoring of medicines and homely remedies.
Should-do action 6 of 6
Should do
Well-led
The service should continue to develop an effective maternity-specific annual auditing programme.

Location details

CQC ID: RPA02
Local authority: Medway
Region: South East

Inspection report

Type: Location
Date: 28 April 2023
Rating: Requires improvement
Actions: 6 should-do
AI-extracted 3 Jun 2026