Save Our Maternity Services
Back Our Campaign
Temporary Suspension
The Royal Devon University Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust has announced the temporary suspension of births at North Devon District Hospital from 11th August 2026.
A shortage of consultant gynaecologists and obstetricians in the area is now expected to trigger our hospital's emergency safeguards for staffing. If the safety of patients is at risk, the Trust will transfer births to other hospitals, which are further away.
It is absolutely critical we ensure the future of local maternity services here in North Devon.
Ian Roome, Lib Dem MP for North Devon, said: “Patient safety must come first. Many families will be worried about this announcement, and we must ensure local maternity cover is restored, right here in North Devon. Emergency measures cannot be allowed to become the thin end of the wedge: we need to fix the underlying recruitment crisis.”
Ian has written to our Hospital Trust, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, Devon Integrated Care Board, and the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists.
The planned suspension is temporary and affects only deliveries; antenatal and postnatal care will remain local to North Devon.
Ian is calling on the trust to put in place emergency continuity plans including seeking out cover staff from other parts of the South West, and is urging a massive public response to restore local maternity services as soon as possible.
Please Back Our Campaign Today!
We the undersigned:
- Support the urgent reinstatement of local births at North Devon District Hospital as soon as safe staffing levels can be assured.
- Call for recruitment efforts to be bolstered in response to worsening staffing shortfalls in gynaecology and obstetrics, and Tier 2 maternity cover in North Devon.
- Recognise that North Devon District Hospital is the remotest acute hospital in mainland England, and note the risks involved in transferring patients from remote areas to more distant hospitals.
- Urge the Trust to reassure patients and our local community on operational contingency plans ahead of and during the suspension regarding: staff redeployment, patient transfers, plans for vulnerable patients, collaboration with ambulance services and pre-booked accommodation for those in early labour.
- Call for the planned suspension to be averted if safe staffing levels can be put in place ahead of the 11th August deadline.
- Express strong opposition to any temporary suspension becoming a permanent loss of local maternity services from North Devon.
Restore Local Maternity Services