Maternity Services: Fathers
(asked on 3rd November 2025) - View Source
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that NHS (a) maternity wards and (b) perinatal services treat fathers as active participants in the birth process.
The Secretary of State for Health and Social Care has committed to putting the voices of families, including fathers, at the heart of the approach to improving quality, safety and accountability in maternity services.
Baroness Amos’ independent national investigation into NHS maternity and neonatal services will ensure that the lived experiences of families, including fathers and non-birthing partners, are fully heard and used to inform the development of the national recommendations. A National Maternity and Neonatal Taskforce, chaired by the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, will take forward the recommendations of the investigation to develop a new national action plan to drive improvements across maternity and neonatal care.
National bodies such as the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence and the Royal College of Midwives have issued guidelines emphasising the importance of involving fathers and partners in maternity and perinatal care. These guidelines set expectations for trusts to adopt family-centred care and to treat fathers as active participants, not just visitors or observers. These resources are available at the following link:
Fathers and partners can now receive evidence-based assessments and support through specialist perinatal mental health services where needed, with some NHS trusts now also working with Home Start UK’s Dad Matters project to support paternal mental health. The project engages with fathers to help them understand their baby, their role as a father, and how transition to fatherhood may affect them and their family.