Overview

• The probe will examine maternity and neonatal services at Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust, with the chair and terms of reference yet to be named.
• Leeds will remain part of the national rapid review of 14 trusts led by Baroness Amos while the separate inquiry is established.
• Families welcomed the decision, urged the appointment of Donna Ockenden to lead the inquiry, and called for early police involvement.
• In June, the Care Quality Commission downgraded the trust to "inadequate," citing serious risks to women and babies and a deep-rooted blame culture.
• Evidence underpinning the scrutiny includes MBRRACE-UK data identifying Leeds as an outlier on perinatal deaths and a BBC report that at least 56 baby deaths since 2019 might have been preventable.