With Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust already under fire amid the biggest maternity scandal in NHS history, cops have confirmed the arrests of two men linked to practices at the same group
Two men were arrested on suspicion of misconduct in the running of mortuary services at a hospital trust at the centre of what has been described as the biggest maternity scandal in NHS history.
The arrests came just days before the publication of a major report into failings at Nottingham University Hospitals (NUH) NHS Trust, which examined more than 2,500 cases involving mothers and babies who died or suffered serious harm.
Nottinghamshire Police said the men, aged 55 and 59, were arrested on Monday in connection with operating practices within the trust’s mortuary service. NUH operates mortuary services at Queen’s Medical Centre and Nottingham City Hospital under a licence provided by the Human Tissue Authority.
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In a statement, Nottinghamshire Police said: “The enforcement was carried out by Operation Perth which is Nottinghamshire Police’s investigation into maternity services at both hospitals.
“Operation Perth discovered breaches of regulations of the Human Tissue Act in relation to the management and operating practices of the mortuary services.”
Nottinghamshire’s deputy chief constable, Rob Griffin, said: “We recognise this will be particularly distressing for families.
“We appreciate that this development comes only a few days before the publication of the independent maternity review, led by Donna Ockenden, which will be an important but difficult time for families.
“We have contacted the families who we have already identified as being directly impacted by the issues established within the NUH trust mortuaries. As the investigation progresses, we will contact other families who have been directly affected as soon as they are identified.”
The report by senior midwife Donna Ockenden is due to be published on Wednesday 22 and is expected to outline “horrendous” failings in maternity care at Nottingham’s Queen’s Medical Centre and Nottingham City Hospital including racism towards mothers. The review examined more than 2,500 cases involving babies and mothers who died or suffered injuries, including babies who were stillborn while under the care of Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust.
The trust has already paid out millions of pounds in compensation and fines after being prosecuted over poor care and Nottinghamshire Police launched a corporate manslaughter investigation last year as part of a wider criminal probe into maternity failings at the trust.
The General Medical Council and the Nursing and Midwifery Council are also investigating allegations against individual members of staff. Ahead of the report’s publication, the Nottingham Maternity Families Group urged former PM Keir Starmer to order a statutory public inquiry into maternity care across England.
