Published30 September 2026, 13:16 BST
An NHS trust has apologised after an independent review found that eight babies might have survived with better maternity care, admitting it has "failed families".
The stillbirths all occurred at the East Kent Hospitals NHS Trust's hospitals between June 2025 and March 2026.
An independent review ordered by the trust found systemic issues lay at the heart of the failures. These included failures to manage high risk pregnancies, provide appropriate triage, identify foetal growth concerns, and make appropriate use of interpreter services.
Since the report, a further seven stillbirths have occurred, including three last month. A review into those deaths has now been ordered.
All the stillbirths occurred after 34 weeks gestation.
Three years ago, the Kirkup report found 45 babies might have survived at the trust's hospitals if they had received better care.
The East Kent NHS trust runs the William Harvey Hospital in Ashford and the Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother Hospital (QEQM) in Margate.
Papers for a board meeting on Thursday, external contained a report by the acting CEO of the trust, Dr Des Holden, who apologised to the families involved.
Dr Holden wrote: "On behalf of the board, and personally, I am very sorry and apologise to the women and families, and their communities, where failings in our care are at the heart of these devastating outcomes."
The board papers contained a further report, headed Response to the Independent Stillbirth Review, which said four cases were assessed as having care deficiencies likely to have affected the outcome for the baby.
In a further four cases, care issues were identified that may have contributed to the outcome.
The review found "recurrent and systemic weaknesses in the management of high-risk pregnancy, foetal surveillance, maternity triage, escalation and organisational learning", documents said.
Documents also said since the review "there have, regrettably, been a further four term stillbirths from April 2026 and July 2026 and a further three in August 2026".
Helen Gittos, who lost her baby Harriett in 2014, has previously told the BBC how her baby was born at the QEQM, but sustained a brain injury and lived for a week.
After the latest review was published she said: "It's gut-wrenching, it really is, to be here again, reading a report of… a series of awful tragedies and so many failings in so many respects, and things that have been known about for so very long.
"Talking to other families involved, last night, our reactions are sort of a mixture of incredulity and rage. It's not acceptable that so little has changed in so long."
She added: "It's deeply distressing this trust have long-known that there were problems, but I think there are serious questions to answer for the national and regional NHS England support teams who have been intensively trying to help this trust and trying to help others elsewhere and it's not working.
"We have to try to do things differently."
After the board papers were published, Dr Holden said: "This review is clear that sadly, we have failed families. We are truly sorry."
He said the trust requested the review after increased safety monitoring introduced following Dr Bill Kirkup's investigation identified a rise in stillbirths.
Each stillbirth was investigated and an independent review commissioned into 11 cases.
"We are implementing the review's recommendations in full," he said, "including improving continuity of care for women with high-risk pregnancies, maternity triage, enhancing staff training and increasing the amount of translated information and access to interpreters.
"We are working with the national Maternity and Neonatal Intensive Support Team to ensure our services meet the standards women and families deserve."
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