Trust to pay up to £23.7m over 2004 birth failings

The boy was born at Nottingham's City Hospital in 2004

A hospital trust is to pay a damages settlement of up to £23.7m to a 20-year-old born with cerebral palsy.

In December 2021 a High Court judge ruled Nottingham University Hospitals (NUH) NHS Trust had been at fault for injuries caused when the boy was born in 2004.

The compensation settlement - which lawyers for the man said were agreed with the trust last week before being approved by a judge - will include a lump sum of £7.8m and annual payments for the rest of the man's life.

In a statement the trust - which has already paid out more than £100m over maternity failings at its centres between 2006 and 2023 - said it had fully accepted the court's findings and offered "sincere apologies" to the family.

'Exceptionally tough'

The boy was born at Nottingham City Hospital following an emergency Caesarean section when the mother was 37 weeks pregnant.

A judge found the mother's reports of concerns over a lack of foetal movement in the days before were not acted upon by staff, which he concluded were "a breach of duty".

The mother of the man - who cannot be named for legal reasons - said the settlement would secure her son's medical care for the rest of his life.

"I know people will see the value of the potential final settlement and think it is a lot of money, but this will be money to provide the care our son needs, helping us give him the most comfortable life now, and crucially ensuring he has 24-hour care when we are not around in the future," she said.

"It has taken us 12 years to reach this day, the day where we can really start to plan for the rest of our son's lives with some certainty and security."

'Committed to improvement'

Chris Moore, joint national head of clinical negligence at Hudgell Solicitors, says reaching an agreement brings to an end a "long legal battle" with the trust.

"This has been an exceptionally tough road for my client and his family," he said.

"The final settlement could have been reached sooner with a more sensible approach, in my view."

Manjeet Shehmar, medical director at NUH, said: "I am truly sorry for the harm caused to the baby who was delivered in our maternity services in 2004, and would like to offer our sincere apologies to the family.

"We fully accepted the court's findings in 2021 and are pleased that a settlement has been reached. We hope this helps provide the support that is needed.

"We are committed to making improvements through our Maternity Improvement Programme, the foundations of which are based on vital feedback from women and families."