Donna Ockenden

Who Donna Ockenden is

Donna Ockenden is a British independent senior midwife with more than 35 years of experience in UK and international health settings, including 14 years as a Head of Midwifery/Chief Midwife and more than five years as a Divisional Director of Women and Children's Divisions. She served as Chair of the RCM England Heads of Midwifery Advisory Board from 2006 to 2014 and was appointed Senior Midwifery Adviser to the Chief Executive of the Nursing and Midwifery Council in 2015. In 2016 she was commissioned by the Secretary of State for Health to chair an independent review of maternity services at Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital NHS Trust; the final Ockenden Report, published in March 2022, found that 201 babies and nine mothers could have survived with better care and made 60 recommendations for the Trust and national maternity services. She subsequently chaired the Independent Review of Maternity Services at Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust (final report published June 2026, finding 520 mothers and babies suffered potentially avoidable harm) and was appointed by Health Secretary Wes Streeting to chair the independent review of maternity and neonatal services at Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust. She is consistently cited in press coverage as a leading voice on NHS maternity safety, staffing shortfalls, and the need to listen to affected families.

References for this biography

1. 1.About Donna – Donna Ockenden — Career history, senior NHS roles, review chairmanships, RCM board role, NMC adviser role, awards and contact details
2. 2.Donna Ockenden appointed to chair Leeds maternity review – GOV.UK press release — Appointment by Health Secretary Wes Streeting to lead independent review at Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust
3. 3.Ockenden review into maternity services at Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust: final report – GOV.UK — Confirms Ockenden chaired the Nottingham review with 160+ reviewers; final report published June 2026
4. 4.Ockenden Maternity Review – official review website — Confirms her role chairing the Nottingham independent maternity review and the review's scope
5. 5.Donna Ockenden – HSJ Patient Safety Congress speaker profile — Senior NHS leadership roles including 14 years as Head of Midwifery/Chief Midwife and Divisional Director roles
6. 6.Who is Donna Ockenden and why is the Nottingham maternity inquiry needed? – ITV News Central — Career background, RCM England chair role 2006–2014, appointment to Nottingham review
7. 7.DONNA OCKENDEN LIMITED – Companies House — Confirms Donna Ockenden Limited is an active private limited company, SIC 86900 (Other human health activities), registered in Chichester
8. 8.Contact Donna – Donna Ockenden — Organisational address (First Floor, 31 North St, Chichester, PO19 1LX), organisational phone, press email, and X handle
9. 9.NHS Maternity Failures: Nottingham Ockenden Report 2026 – Osbornes Law — Confirms Nottingham final report published 24 June 2026; 520 mothers and babies suffered potentially avoidable harm; 162 died after substandard care; review team of 160+ reviewers met 2,500+ families

Notable achievements

• Chaired the Independent Review of Maternity Services at Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital NHS Trust; final report (March 2022) found 201 babies and nine mothers could have survived with better care, and made 60 recommendations. Source ↗
• Chaired the Independent Review of Maternity Services at Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust; final report (June 2026) found 520 mothers and babies suffered potentially avoidable harm, reviewed by a team of over 160 independent reviewers. Source ↗
• Appointed by Health Secretary Wes Streeting to chair the independent review into maternity and neonatal services at Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust. Source ↗
• Listed in the HSJ 100 'most influential people in health' in June 2022. Source ↗
• Named Fellow of the Royal Society for the Encouragement of Arts, Manufacture and Commerce (FRSA) in February 2021. Source ↗

What Donna Ockenden has said

• “We have to learn in this country that families shouldn't have to fight as hard to get the answers that they deserve.”

  Senior midwife leading maternity review in Nottingham · Maternity & neonatal · 4 Oct 2026 · Senior midwife Donna Ockenden open to leading other maternity inquiries ↗

• “The Nottingham families have discussed this with me and I have said that I feel confident that there is a way that I can do this, that I can lead this review [in Sussex] without in any way impacting on the timeline for Nottingham.”

  former clinical midwife, led the Ockenden Review into failings in maternity care at the Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital NHS Trust · Maternity & neonatal · 4 Oct 2026 · Donna Ockenden open to leading Sussex baby deaths review ↗

• “Families have been very clear for a very long time that their request was for me to chair their independent maternity services at Leeds.”

  senior midwife · Maternity & neonatal · 4 Oct 2026 · Donna Ockenden made Leeds Hospitals Trust maternity inquiry chair ↗

• “After years of gathering evidence, senior midwife Donna Ockenden is due to publish her review - the largest of its kind in NHS history - of maternity failings at Nottingham's two major hospitals.”

  Senior midwife leading the maternity review · Maternity & neonatal · 4 Oct 2026 · The story behind the largest maternity review in the NHS ↗

• “So there's been a lot of catching up to do but we are now starting to see real significant progress in that relationship between families and trust.”

  independent senior midwife · Maternity & neonatal · 4 Oct 2026 · Maternity inquiry chair says she has learnt lessons from past reviews ↗

• “It is being led by senior midwife Donna Ockenden, and is due to conclude later this year.”

  senior midwife leading NHS maternity review · Maternity & neonatal · 30 Sept 2026 · Under-fire Nottingham maternity services still need to improve, inspectors say ↗

• “Last year, Ockenden, a former clinical midwife, said it was 'an honour to be trusted by families'.”

  Senior midwife, former clinical midwife · Maternity & neonatal · 30 Sept 2026 · Senior midwife Donna Ockenden to lead Sussex maternity review ↗

• “it won't be an easy read, but added comprehensive support would be available for the families and I know the trust will do the same for their staff”

  Senior midwife leading independent review into Nottingham maternity services · Maternity & neonatal · 30 Sept 2026 · Doctors regulator reviewing 62 maternity cases ↗

• “It's a privilege to have the trust of so many families across Sussex. Family voices will run through the heart of the review; their perspective is essential in ensuring that the review is fully inclusive and reflective of their experiences (what has happened to them), and meets their needs.”

  Independent chair of maternity review · Maternity & neonatal · 30 Sept 2026 · Scope of maternity review confirmed ↗

• “It's a privilege to have the trust of so many families across Sussex. Family voices will run through the heart of the Review; their perspective is essential in ensuring that the Review is fully inclusive and reflective of their experiences (what has happened to them), and meets their needs.”

  former midwife, healthcare leader with more than 35 years experience · Maternity & neonatal · 30 Sept 2026 · Maternity care of 1,000+ NHS Sussex cases to be reviewed following baby deaths | ITV News ↗

• “The independent inquiry into failings at Nottingham University Hospitals (NUH) NHS Trust, led by senior midwife Donna Ockenden, will be published in June.”

  senior midwife · Maternity & neonatal · 30 Sept 2026 · Michelle Welsh: Labour MP failed by NHS appointed first maternity adviser ↗

• “It's a privilege to be trusted by so many families, we work really hard to win that trust. It is the families who deserve every possible accolade.”

  Senior midwife · Maternity & neonatal · 30 Sept 2026 · Bereaved families 'hopeful' after Leeds maternity inquiry meeting ↗

• “The wider review into maternity failings in Nottingham began in September 2022, and was led by senior midwife Donna Ockenden.”

  senior midwife · Maternity & neonatal · 30 Sept 2026 · Nottingham maternity scandal to be dramatised in new series ↗

• “The independent investigation will be led by senior midwife and investigator Donna Ockenden and will look at more than 1,000 cases, dating back to 2018.”

  senior midwife and investigator · Maternity & neonatal · 30 Sept 2026 · Care probe into Sussex maternity services to meet with bereaved families ↗

• “I have made it clear on multiple occasions to the secretary of state for health, his officials and team, that I stand ready to chair the review into Leeds maternity services and can begin work immediately if asked. Over many years, my team and I have developed both the robust methodology and the deep expertise required to undertake reviews of this scale and complexity.”

  Senior midwife leading inquiry into Nottingham maternity services · Maternity & neonatal · 30 Sept 2026 · 'Families have lost trust over maternity inquiry' ↗

• “What the evidence shows is that at Nottingham, a toxic culture was allowed to take hold and was allowed to persist. A small number of powerful leaders described in both family and staff testimonies as having infected the unit, creating an environment in which bullying was normalised, speaking up was dangerous and governance was shaped by self-protection, rather than patient safety.”

  senior midwife · Maternity & neonatal · 30 Sept 2026 · 'Systemic failings' the Nottingham maternity report at a glance ↗

• “To every family who came forward, I want to say this: we have listened. It is my sincere hope that through this review you now feel as though your voices have been heard and what happened to you and your families has been recognised and will be acted upon.”

  Chair of the Independent Review · Maternity & neonatal · 30 Sept 2026 · Martha's Rule extended to all maternity services ↗

• “Nottingham thought that there was a Nottingham way, that they were some kind of superior NHS trust compared to others”

  Senior midwife leading the maternity inquiry · Maternity & neonatal · 30 Sept 2026 · 'Don't be too kind': Maternity staff used offensive terms to refer to pregnant women ↗

• “What families have said to me is that to feel the support of other families, to be able to know that they are not on their own, is really important”

  Senior midwife · Maternity & neonatal · 30 Sept 2026 · Families welcome progress in maternity care inquiry ↗

• “The independent maternity review, led by senior midwife Ockenden, concluded there were 'potentially avoidable' outcomes for mothers and babies in 520 cases.”

  Senior midwife leading independent maternity review · Maternity & neonatal · 30 Sept 2026 · NHS boss 'shocked and upset' by maternity findings ↗

• “We will proactively reach out to ensure that the voices of seldom-heard families are heard through this review.”

  senior midwife, expert on maternity safety · NHS waiting lists · 29 Sept 2026 · ‘I felt robbed’: bereaved parents hope for answers from Sussex maternity review ↗

• “Parents will meet senior midwife Donna Ockenden in Brighton on 5 September as part of her independent review into care provided by University Hospitals Sussex NHS Foundation Trust”

  senior midwife leading independent review · Maternity & neonatal · 29 Sept 2026 · Parents urged to join maternity review ↗

• “Ockenden said her priority would be to listen carefully to affected families and bereaved families, as well as engage with Sussex communities and healthcare workers. According to her, the review team will actively reach out to families whose voices are usually not heard. She stressed that the scope of the review must reflect families' experiences and allow the care provided to be thoroughly examined.”

  senior midwife · Maternity & neonatal · 29 Sept 2026 · Independent review of Sussex maternity services begins in the UK ↗

• “A major investigation by the midwife and community activist Donna Ockenden into maternity services at Nottingham University hospitals trust is uncovering some harrowing failures of care.”

  midwife and community activist · Women's health & gynaecology · 29 Sept 2026 · Thirty-seven patients die needlessly each day in the NHS. Change is good, but patient safety must come first | Jeremy Hunt ↗

• “A review by senior midwife Donna Ockenden concluded in June that hundreds of mothers and babies suffered potentially avoidable harm or died due to "deeply embedded systemic failures" at maternity units in Nottingham.”

  senior midwife · Maternity & neonatal · 29 Sept 2026 · Health secretary to meet maternity families in Nottingham ↗

• “leading senior midwife leading an independent review of maternity services at the trust”

  senior midwife · Maternity & neonatal · 29 Sept 2026 · Maternity service at Worthing Hospital downgraded by CQC ↗

• “The report released last week, which was led by childbirth expert and midwife Donna Ockenden, found that in Queen's Medical Centre and Nottingham City Hospital, "multiple" women had experienced "bullying" and poor or "cruel" care as understaffing issues persisted.”

  childbirth expert and midwife · Maternity & neonatal · 8 Sept 2026 · Why is the UK mired in a maternity and neonatal deaths scandal ↗

• “My team found examples of what they described as normalisation of deviance. This occurred when there were significant concerns that should have led to intervention, but the quest for normal birth continued – and avoidance of intervention persisted, often with tragic outcomes.”

  Chair of the review into Nottingham University Hospital Trust's maternity services · Maternity & neonatal · 8 Sept 2026 · Patient Safety Watch: The wrong voices ↗

• “I cannot see any reason why anyone who has any understanding of maternity services would even be thinking of sidelining Nottingham. Nottingham is the largest ever inquiry into a single service in the history of the NHS.”

  Chair of Nottingham University Hospitals Trust maternity inquiry · Maternity & neonatal · 8 Sept 2026 · National maternity review will not sideline Nottingham probe ↗

• “The thousands of women I've spoken to want a safe birth above everything else, so we should not vilify or criticise women who make those decisions. In the reality of today's maternity services – where women are living in poverty, deprivation, they've got pre-existing illnesses – obstetricians, midwives, nurses can only do so much, and we don't always do enough in all cases to optimise women's health prior to pregnancy.”

  one of the UK's most senior midwives leading the biggest inquiry in NHS history into maternity failures in Nottingham · Hospital discharge / bed-blocking · 27 Aug 2026 · Caesareans overtake natural vaginal births in England for first time, NHS data finds ↗

• “It is an honour to have been asked to chair this review, and I feel a profound sense of responsibility to the parents, babies and healthcare professionals it concerns to ensure that we get this right.”

  midwife · Hospital discharge / bed-blocking · 27 Aug 2026 · Families welcome appointment of Donna Ockenden to Leeds maternity inquiry ↗

• “There was this ongoing thing that South Asian women would complain about pain more. But I don't think it was cultural differences at all: I think it was just discrimination.”

  senior midwife writing the Nottinghamshire report · Hospital discharge / bed-blocking · 27 Aug 2026 · Midwives want to make childbirth miraculous – so what went so wrong in Nottingham? | Zoe Williams ↗

• “Ockenden believes there is "an improving culture in maternity services in Nottingham in 2026 but there remains work to do".”

  senior midwife and expert in maternity care failings · Hospital discharge / bed-blocking · 27 Aug 2026 · Report on Nottingham NHS maternity scandal to reveal ‘horrendous’ failings ↗

• “Led by Donna Ockenden, an independent senior midwife, the review examined 2,500 cases involving mothers and babies dying or being seriously injured, or babies being stillborn, while under the care of Nottingham university hospitals NHS trust between 2012 and 2025.”

  independent senior midwife · Hospital discharge / bed-blocking · 27 Aug 2026 · Nottingham maternity care scandal review: what are the key findings? ↗

• “Led by the senior midwife Donna Ockenden, the inquiry investigated stillbirths, neonatal deaths, maternal deaths and babies or mothers who suffered brain damage and other injuries between 2012 and 2025.”

  senior midwife · Hospital discharge / bed-blocking · 27 Aug 2026 · ‘Truly horrific’: the stories of five people affected by the NHS maternity scandal ↗

• “A damning report led by the childbirth expert Donna Ockenden has found that 444 women and 76 newborn babies suffered 'potentially avoidable' outcomes because they received substandard treatment over 13 years from Nottingham University hospitals NHS trust.”

  senior midwife · Hospital discharge / bed-blocking · 27 Aug 2026 · More than 500 mothers and babies died or were harmed at ‘toxic’ Nottingham NHS trust, report finds ↗

• “Multiple women experienced dangerously poor and sometimes 'cruel' care there, understaffing was routine, lessons from patient safety incidents were not learned, and bullying by 'intimidating cliques' of staff was rife, she found.”

  maternity safety expert · Hospital discharge / bed-blocking · 27 Aug 2026 · ‘Horrific’ maternity care failings at Nottingham NHS trust prompt calls for public inquiry ↗

• “A review published on Wednesday, led by Donna Ockenden, an independent senior midwife, found that more than 500 mothers and babies died or were harmed at the "toxic" trust between 2012 and 2025 due to "systemic, deep-rooted" failures in maternity and neonatal care.”

  independent senior midwife · Hospital discharge / bed-blocking · 27 Aug 2026 · Bodies in Nottingham NHS trust mortuary in state of ‘advanced deterioration’, inspectors say ↗

Recent social activity

• I’m in my beloved St Ives for #BLAW2026 and with my @OckReview team we have made an absolute recommitment to improving both #perinatalsafety and bereavement care for parents & families when they need it most -this must not be postcode related which is what we currently hear? https://t.co/Con28Uf0lr

  x.com ↗

• Thank you to the places that mean the world to me! Thank you for acknowledging & remembering babies who left us too soon (many who should be with us if their care / their mother’s care was better?!) Thank you #StIves and #Chichester ❤️ https://t.co/Piqfo4UTWz

  x.com ↗

Where Donna Ockenden has been quoted

1. Families to meet Health Secretary today over maternity and neonatal failings in Leedshellorayo.co.uk · 7 Oct 2026
2. Senior midwife Donna Ockenden open to leading other maternity inquiriesbbc.com · 4 Oct 2026
3. Donna Ockenden open to leading Sussex baby deaths reviewbbc.co.uk · 4 Oct 2026
4. Donna Ockenden made Leeds Hospitals Trust maternity inquiry chairbbc.com · 4 Oct 2026
5. The story behind the largest maternity review in the NHSbbc.com · 4 Oct 2026
6. Maternity inquiry chair says she has learnt lessons from past reviewsbbc.co.uk · 4 Oct 2026
7. Under-fire Nottingham maternity services still need to improve, inspectors saybbc.co.uk · 30 Sept 2026
8. Senior midwife Donna Ockenden to lead Sussex maternity reviewbbc.com · 30 Sept 2026
9. Doctors regulator reviewing 62 maternity casesbbc.co.uk · 30 Sept 2026
10. Scope of maternity review confirmedgov.uk · 30 Sept 2026
11. Maternity care of 1,000+ NHS Sussex cases to be reviewed following baby deaths | ITV Newsitv.com · 30 Sept 2026
12. Michelle Welsh: Labour MP failed by NHS appointed first maternity adviserbbc.com · 30 Sept 2026
13. Bereaved families 'hopeful' after Leeds maternity inquiry meetingbbc.com · 30 Sept 2026
14. Nottingham maternity scandal to be dramatised in new seriesbbc.co.uk · 30 Sept 2026
15. Care probe into Sussex maternity services to meet with bereaved familiesbbc.com · 30 Sept 2026
16. 'Families have lost trust over maternity inquiry'bbc.com · 30 Sept 2026
17. 'Systemic failings' the Nottingham maternity report at a glancebbc.co.uk · 30 Sept 2026
18. Martha's Rule extended to all maternity servicesgov.uk · 30 Sept 2026
19. 'Don't be too kind': Maternity staff used offensive terms to refer to pregnant womenbbc.com · 30 Sept 2026
20. Families welcome progress in maternity care inquirybbc.co.uk · 30 Sept 2026
21. NHS boss 'shocked and upset' by maternity findingsbbc.co.uk · 30 Sept 2026
22. ‘I felt robbed’: bereaved parents hope for answers from Sussex maternity reviewtheguardian.com · 29 Sept 2026
23. Parents urged to join maternity reviewbbc.co.uk · 29 Sept 2026
24. Independent review of Sussex maternity services begins in the UKua.news · 29 Sept 2026
25. Thirty-seven patients die needlessly each day in the NHS. Change is good, but patient safety must come first | Jeremy Hunttheguardian.com · 29 Sept 2026
26. Health secretary to meet maternity families in Nottinghambbc.co.uk · 29 Sept 2026
27. Maternity service at Worthing Hospital downgraded by CQCbbc.co.uk · 29 Sept 2026
28. Why is the UK mired in a maternity and neonatal deaths scandalaljazeera.com · 8 Sept 2026
29. Patient Safety Watch: The wrong voiceshsj.co.uk · 8 Sept 2026
30. National maternity review will not sideline Nottingham probehsj.co.uk · 8 Sept 2026
31. Caesareans overtake natural vaginal births in England for first time, NHS data findstheguardian.com · 27 Aug 2026
32. Families welcome appointment of Donna Ockenden to Leeds maternity inquirytheguardian.com · 27 Aug 2026
33. Midwives want to make childbirth miraculous – so what went so wrong in Nottingham? | Zoe Williamstheguardian.com · 27 Aug 2026
34. Report on Nottingham NHS maternity scandal to reveal ‘horrendous’ failingstheguardian.com · 27 Aug 2026
35. Nottingham maternity care scandal review: what are the key findings?theguardian.com · 27 Aug 2026
36. ‘Truly horrific’: the stories of five people affected by the NHS maternity scandaltheguardian.com · 27 Aug 2026
37. More than 500 mothers and babies died or were harmed at ‘toxic’ Nottingham NHS trust, report findstheguardian.com · 27 Aug 2026
38. ‘Horrific’ maternity care failings at Nottingham NHS trust prompt calls for public inquirytheguardian.com · 27 Aug 2026
39. Bodies in Nottingham NHS trust mortuary in state of ‘advanced deterioration’, inspectors saytheguardian.com · 27 Aug 2026

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Contact & links

• Websitehttps://www.donnaockenden.compublished here ↗
• LinkedInhttps://uk.linkedin.com/in/donna-ockenden-200bb259
• Xhttps://x.com/DOckendenLtdpublished here ↗
• Press office emailcommunications@donnaockenden.compublished here ↗
• Press office phone01243 786993published here ↗
• Staff pagehttps://www.donnaockenden.com/about-donna/

Organisational contact points only, each taken from a page the organisation publishes itself. No personal or direct contact details are held or shown.