Musgrove Park maternity services upgraded but safety concerns remain

Maternity services at Musgrove Park Hospital have been upgraded from inadequate to requires improvement after inspectors found progress had been made, although concerns remain around waiting times, safeguarding, medicines and the condition of parts of the maternity unit.

The Care Quality Commission inspected the service, which is run by Somerset NHS Foundation Trust, in February to assess whether improvements had been made following its previous inspection. At that time, enforcement action was taken and a warning notice was issued requiring improvements to the safety of women using maternity services at Musgrove Park and Yeovil hospitals.

The requirements of the warning notice relating to Musgrove Park have now been met and are no longer in place. However, inspectors found the service remained in breach of regulations covering safe care and treatment, safeguarding, medicines management and the environment. The trust is required to provide the CQC with an action plan setting out how these concerns will be addressed.

Safety and leadership at the maternity service have both improved from inadequate to requires improvement, while effectiveness and caring are rated good and responsiveness requires improvement. Musgrove Park Hospital as a whole continues to hold an overall rating of good.

Inspectors found maternity services had been operating under additional pressure following the temporary closure of the maternity unit at Yeovil Hospital in May 2025, which resulted in additional demand being transferred to Musgrove Park.

Some women were waiting for up to 10 hours for a medical review in maternity triage, while there were occasions when women left without an updated care plan because a doctor was not available. The pregnancy assessment unit also did not always have a doctor available, meaning women requiring medical assessment had to be transferred to triage and could experience further delays.

Safeguarding was another area of concern. Inspectors found women were not always routinely asked about domestic violence and that some safeguarding referrals had either been missed or delayed. The trust was aware of the problems and had begun taking action, but the CQC said further work was required to ensure women’s safety needs were consistently identified and acted upon.

Inspectors also identified problems with the physical environment. Water was leaking into clinical areas and mould had developed on walls and ceilings in the postnatal ward. A shortage of storage space also meant cleaning equipment was being kept close to public toilets in a waiting area.

Medicines management required further improvement, with inspectors finding gaps in women’s drug histories because records were not always kept up to date. This meant doctors and midwives did not consistently have all the information needed when making decisions about care.

Privacy on the postnatal ward was also raised as an issue. Women and their babies were being cared for in a large shared area containing multiple beds, making private and confidential conversations more difficult. Some staff also told inspectors they had raised concerns but had not always seen action taken in response.

Alongside the areas requiring further improvement, inspectors identified positive developments. The trust had declared full compliance with the national maternity safety scheme and leaders were running three improvement projects addressing issues identified through the inspection, including the way women are assessed when they arrive and how the service responds when complications occur during birth.

The CQC also found women spoke positively about the people caring for them, describing staff as compassionate and caring and saying they went above and beyond to provide support. A member of the maternity team was also recognised nationally in 2026 by the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists for their training and support of junior doctors.

Catherine Campbell, CQC deputy director of hospitals in Somerset, said inspectors had seen clear improvement since the previous inspection but that important safety concerns remained. She said the regulator would continue monitoring the service to ensure further improvements were delivered and women and babies were kept safe.

The move from inadequate to requires improvement marks progress for Musgrove Park’s maternity service and means the previous warning notice requirements have been satisfied. However, the remaining regulatory breaches and concerns identified by inspectors show there is still significant work required before the service reaches the standard expected across all areas.

Stay informed with the stories shaping health and social care.