Baby loss family urge change from maternity review

Lisa Blackstock and her son-in-law Samoye Richards said they were heartbroken and angry after Reggie's death

A family has described their heartbreak and anger after a mother in labour was twice sent home from hospital before going on to lose her baby boy.

Reggie was eventually stillborn to Hayleigh Richards in July 2023 at the former City Hospital in Birmingham, run by the Sandwell and West Birmingham Hospitals NHS Trust.

The trust is one of 14 being examined as part of a rapid review of maternity care in England and its chief executive said they were committed to improving their services.

Mrs Richards' mother, Lisa Blackstock, said: "I was really really angry but you put your trust in the midwives, you put your trust in the hospital. It was her first baby."

Warning: this article contains an image some readers may find distressing

Twice, in the early stage of labour, Mrs Richards was sent home from hospital. The third time she went they could not detect Reggie's heartbeat.

She wanted her husband, Samoye Richards, as well as her mother to speak to the BBC, because she said she was too upset.

"The feelings, I just can't put into words, our lives just crumbled," her husband said, from the family home in Great Barr.

"It's been a couple of years now but the effects from that will be with us forever, I see it every day in my wife, Hayleigh."

Asked about the effect on him, he sighed before saying: "It's been proper tough."

Laura Rose Thorogood, from Make Birth Better, said their organisation was working to make sure "marginalised voices" were heard by the review

Placing his hand on his heart, Mr Richards said he wanted to speak out "to make Reggie proud" and hoped it would help other families.

He added he had found support through playing football with other bereaved dads in a team run by a baby loss charity.

The couple have instructed solicitors to investigate what happened with Reggie.

Leanne Atkinson, a lawyer with the firm Irwin Mitchell, said: "Our concerns are centred around Hayleigh's attendances at the hospital.

"We feel that more should have been done to listen to Hayleigh."

Maternity services moved from the former City Hospital to the new Midland Metropolitan University Hospital in Smethwick after it opened in 2024.

Diane Wake, chief executive of the Sandwell and West Birmingham Hospitals NHS Trust, said they were "deeply saddened" by the death of Reggie.

"Our thoughts and heartfelt sympathies are with his family," she added.

"This tragic incident, which occurred in 2023, was fully investigated by the independent Maternity and Newborn Safety Investigations programme.

"We have taken forward all recommendations from that investigation to strengthen our maternity pathways and ensure families receive safer and more compassionate care.

"We remain committed to listening, learning and continually improving our services to help prevent future tragedies."

Samoye Richards said he and his wife's lives "just crumbled" when Reggie was stillborn

A spokesperson for the NHS trust said that they supported the national review's aim to improve maternity care across the country and would work openly with the investigation team.

That review is being chaired by Baroness Amos who said in September she was committed to ensuring families affected by maternity care failures were heard and that the 14 investigations would lead to improvements nationwide.

A spokesperson for a community interest company, Make Birth Better, said 99 organisations have formed a working group to lobby for maternity improvements across the country and plan to meet with the rapid review team.

The company say they are a group of experts with lived and professional experience of birth trauma.

Their chief executive, Laura Rose Thorogood, said they felt their organisation was listening to "those marginalised voices and communities that have the poorest outcomes that rarely get a seat at the table".

"It's making sure everyone is brought to the forefront, everyone is heard and we address those poor inequalities of those families and staff," she added.

Ms Blackstock, Reggie's grandmother, said she wanted to see change.

"Hospitals need to know the effect it has on us," she said.

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