These regular briefings aim to provide information to understand key features of our maternity service structure to help you to campaign for improved maternity services. We hope you will find them helpful, and would really appreciate feedback, including suggestions for other topics you would find useful for us to cover.
Birth Activists Briefing: Making a complaint about NHS service
The article looks at the processes for making a complaint about NHS services in each of the four nations of the UK. It explains the stages of the process, where to find information about local complaints procedures, your rights during the process and the role of advocacy organisations. It also lists other sources of support.
AIMS Journal, 2024, Vol 36, No 1
Birth Activist Briefing - The new NICE guideline on Intrapartum Care: what has changed?
This NICE guideline covers care recommendations for women in labour with a single baby at term (37 to 42 weeks of pregnancy) who do not have any factors that might put them or their baby at higher risk. It was partially updated from the 2014 version in September 2023. This article explains the main changes that were made. It also illustrates how AIMS comments as a stakeholder have helped to improve the guidance, in particular strengthening of the language around autonomy and consent.
AIMS Journal, 2023, Vol 35, No 4
Birth Activists Briefing: Recent Publications
In this article members of the AIMS Campaigns Team summarise some of the documents that we have been reading that we think will be of interest to other birth activists. We cover
AIMS Journal, 2023, Vol 35, No 3
Birth Activists’ Briefing: The NMPA clinical audits and Family Gateway
This article explains the role and purpose of the National Maternity and Perinatal Audit, and the different types of report that NMPA produce that may be of use to local and national Birth Activists. The main audits report on a range of interventions and outcomes in maternity and neonatal services in England and Wales, including at site and Trust level. There are also ‘Sprint Audits’ that take an in-depth look at the data relating to a particular issue.
AIMS Journal, 2022, Vol 34, No 3
An Introduction to AIMS Position Papers – Birth Activist Update
This article explains about AIMS position papers, what they are and how birth activists can use them in their own local or national campaigning. Our position papers aim to provide clear, accessible, and up-to-date statements of AIMS views on key issues, what AIMS believes needs to change, the evidence around the issue, what campaigning AIMS is doing, and what others can do to help bring about change.
AIMS Journal, 2022, Vol 34, No 2
Birth Activists Briefing: NHS England Equity and Equality initiatives
In 2021 NHS England published four pledges to improve equity for mothers and babies and race equality for staff. This page explains and comments on the pledges and the associated guidance that was issued to Local Maternity Systems on how to align their Equity and Equality action plans with the health inequalities which exist in their areas.
AIMS Journal, 2021, Vol 33, No 4
Birth Activists Briefing: Why it’s important for you to get involved in your local Maternity Voices Partnership (MVP)
This article explains the role of Maternity Voices Partnerships in working for improvements in local maternity services in England. It explains how they are organised and the importance, as well as the challenges, of being a Service User Representative.
AIMS Journal, 2021, Vol 33, No 3
Birth Activists Briefing: What is a Professional Midwifery Advocate (PMA)?
The role of Professional Midwifery Advocate was introduced in 2020 to replace Supervisors of Midwives in England. This was part of the new Advocating and Educating for Quality Improvement (A-EQUIP) model of midwifery supervision. This article explains how this role was envisaged to support midwifery staff and to work for women.
AIMS Journal, 2020, Vol 32, No 4
Birth Activist Briefing: England’s new Regional Chief Midwives
Seven Regional Chief Midwives were appointed in 2020 to cover the whole of England. This article explains their role and AIMS hopes for how they would contribute to the implementation of the Maternity Transformation Programme. It lists the post-holders at the time of publication.
AIMS Journal, 2020, Vol 32, No 3
We hope that this page is of interest, especially to our colleagues in the maternity services improvement community.
The AIMS Campaigns Team relies on Volunteers to carry out its work. If you would like to collaborate with us, are looking for further information about our work, or would like to join our team, please email campaigns@aims.org.uk.
Please consider supporting us by becoming an AIMS member or making a donation. We are a small charity that accepts no commercial sponsorship, in order to preserve our reputation for providing impartial, evidence-based information.
AIMS supports all maternity service users to navigate the system as it exists, and campaigns for a system which truly meets the needs of all.