New research from King’s College London, Oxford University and charity Birth Companions has revealed a link between children’s social care involvement and maternal deaths.
Upsettingly, more newborn babies in England are entering the care system. Figures from 2019/20 show 2,914 babies were taken into care, which is up by 20% over the last seven years. What’s more, children under one make-up over a quarter of all children in care proceedings.
While these statistics can be described as nothing short of tragic, a new, first-of-its-kind study revealed the stark realities of some mothers who have been involved with the children’s social care system. Experts analysed national surveillance data from 2014 to 2022 – a period in which 1,695 women died within a year of pregnancy; of whom 420 were involved with children’s social care.
Devastatingly, experts found 20% of deaths were as a result of suicide, while other psychiatric causes, including drug-related incidents, led to 30% of the passings. Meanwhile, homicide was also discovered to be the cause of 5% of deaths.
The study outlined that women associated with social care were more likely to die from homicide and mental health related causes than women who weren’t.
It was seen that many of the women who died experienced abuse and mental ill-health. 65% of women with children’s social care involvement reported domestic abuse before or during pregnancy, compared to 3% of women who had nothing to do with the system.
One in three disclosed abuse during childhood as opposed to 2% of women who weren’t associated with social care.
Kaat de Backer, lead author of the study from King’s College London, said: ‘What the analysis tells us is that these women come from backgrounds of trauma and abuse, and yet despite their efforts to keep up with demanding appointments schedules, they often face scrutiny and judgement rather than receiving support for the issues they are facing.
‘Too often, the professionals the women are in touch with don’t work together to provide holistic care, which increases the pressure on a mother. When women have access to designated multi-disciplinary teams, with specialist knowledge and capacity to provide integrated and holistic care, these barriers can be overcome. It makes it easier to understand who is doing what and when, for women and professionals.’
To give context, alongside their research experts conducted a confidential care review, which examined anonymised care records for 47 of the women who died. The findings show in several cases some women had more than thirty different appointments to attend during pregnancy. While designed to help, the appointments led to feelings of overwhelm and focused more on safeguarding the baby, disregarding the mother’s needs.
Against this backdrop, Naomi Delap, director of Birth Companions, is calling for more support to be put in place for new mothers, especially those involved with social care.
‘This study highlights the acute need for better care for women with children’s social care involvement, and the significant barriers that get in the way of providing that care’ she said. ‘To help improve things, we need coordinated national policy and clear expectations across the health and social care systems. In response to this study, Birth Companions is launching work to co-design a national care pathway, in order to deliver consistent, compassionate support for all women who have Children’s Social Care involvement in pregnancy and early motherhood.
‘This work holds the potential to transform care, break cycles of harm, and help ensure fewer mothers lose their lives in such tragic circumstances.’
Photo by Vince Fleming via UnSplash
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