Together We and Maternity Voices Partnership Infant Loss Report
Losing a baby is one of the hardest experiences any family can face. The care parents receive before, during and after that loss matters deeply, and it can stay with families for years.
The Together We and Maternity Voices Partnership Infant Loss Report brings together feedback from parents who have experienced loss and from the staff who support them. That feedback has been heard, and it is now helping to shape bereavement care across local women’s and children’s services.
Listening to families and staff
The report gives an important voice to people with lived experience. Parents described what helped them feel cared for, as well as the moments where services could have felt more compassionate, private or joined up.
Staff feedback is also central. Colleagues who provide care during baby loss often work in emotionally demanding situations. Their insight helps identify what is needed to support both families and the teams caring for them.
A bereavement strategy group is now in place
A Women and Children’s Bereavement Strategy Group has been set up to guide this work. The group includes staff and service user representatives, making sure improvements are shaped by those who understand the impact of bereavement care first-hand.
This approach means feedback is not being treated as a one-off exercise. It is being used to support clear, practical service improvements.
You Said We Did
Work is already underway to improve the provision of appropriate waiting areas at both sites.
This responds directly to feedback about the need for more sensitive spaces, especially when families are attending appointments at an already painful time. Small changes to environment, privacy and flow can make a real difference.
Wider investment in services
North Cumbria Integrated Care NHS Trust has also recently shared news of investment in gynaecology services, with over £5m funding confirmed for Renal and Gynaecology services at West Cumberland Hospital.
While the Infant Loss Report focuses on bereavement experiences, this wider investment sits alongside ongoing work to improve care environments and services for women, babies and families.
What happens next
The report is an important step, but the work does not end with publication. The Bereavement Strategy Group will continue to review feedback, involve service users and staff, and support changes that make care more compassionate, consistent and responsive.
The message from parents and staff is clear: bereavement care must be safe, sensitive and shaped by lived experience. This report helps move that work forward.
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