What is the Gera Maternity Care Index?

The Gera Maternity Care Index (GMCI) is a single 0–100 score that summarises how NHS maternity services in England are rated by the Care Quality Commission (CQC). 100 would mean every service is rated outstanding; lower means more services rated requires improvement or inadequate. It is computed transparently from the real CQC rating distribution published in CQC's National Maternity Inspection Programme (131 hospital maternity locations, August 2022 to December 2023). The national overall index is 48 / 100.

How is the index calculated?

Each CQC rating is given a weight — Outstanding 4, Good 3, Requires improvement 2, Inadequate 1 — and we take the weighted mean rating across the distribution, then rescale that 1–4 range onto 0–100: GMCI = (meanWeight − 1) / 3 × 100, rounded to one decimal place. Every input is CQC's real published percentage; only the weighting and rescaling are Gera's, and both are fully disclosed on the methodology page. It is the same transparent method used for the Gera Provider Quality Score elsewhere on GeraClinic.

How safe are NHS maternity services in England?

CQC's National Maternity Inspection Programme rated no maternity service outstanding for being safe. 35% were rated good, 47% requires improvement and 18% inadequate for safety — so 65.0% of inspected services fell below the "good" safety standard. On the Gera Maternity Care Index the safety sub-score is 39 / 100, lower than the overall index of 48 / 100.

What did CQC find overall?

Of the 131 maternity locations inspected between August 2022 to December 2023, 4% were rated outstanding, 48% good, 36% requires improvement and 12% inadequate. That means 48.0% of inspected services were rated requires improvement or inadequate overall. CQC linked the findings to widespread issues with staffing, unsuitable estates and safety culture rather than isolated failings.

What do women say about their maternity care?

CQC's separate 2024 Maternity Survey (120 NHS trusts, published 28 November 2024) found 77% of women had confidence and trust in staff during labour and birth, but only 60% saw or spoke to a midwife as much as they wanted after the birth (down from 63% in 2023) and just 58% were always given the information and explanations they needed. Patient experience is reported alongside the index but is not an input to the ratings-based score.

Is a higher score good or bad?

Higher is better. A higher Gera Maternity Care Index means more services carry CQC's top ratings and fewer are rated requires improvement or inadequate. A score of 100 would mean every maternity service is rated outstanding; no national maternity picture currently approaches that.

How often is the index updated?

The National Maternity Inspection Programme was a one-off national review (inspections August 2022 to December 2023, report published September 2024), so its distribution is fixed to that programme. Gera refreshes the index when CQC publishes new national maternity analysis, and the per-trust ratings layer is designed to load from the CQC "Care directory with ratings" open-data file, which CQC updates monthly.

Does this rank individual hospitals or trusts?

Not yet. The figures here are the national picture from CQC's inspection programme. A per-trust and per-region ratings layer is built from the CQC "Care directory with ratings" open data (the maternity service rows) and is clearly labelled while it is wired in — no hospital-level number is shown until it can be traced to that real CQC file. For your own hospital, always check its latest rating on the CQC website.

What does the index NOT show?

It covers England only and is based on CQC's ratings of hospital maternity services, not clinical outcomes such as mortality or morbidity, and not your own care. It is a summary of a national inspection programme, not real-time monitoring, and it is information — not medical advice. For any concern about your pregnancy or birth, speak to your midwife, GP or maternity unit.

GeraClinic / Maternity Care Index

The Gera Maternity Care Index

One number for how good NHS maternity care is in England. The Gera Maternity Care Index is a 0–100 score over the real Care Quality Commission (CQC) maternity ratings, where 100 means every service is rated outstanding. Based on CQC’s National Maternity Inspection Programme (131 hospital maternity services, August 2022 to December 2023) it stands at 48 / 100 overall — and just 39 / 100 for safety.

Inspection window: August 2022 to December 2023· CQC National Maternity Inspection Programme (report published September 2024) · Open Government Licence v3.0 · England · hospital maternity services

How good is NHS maternity care in England?

The Gera Maternity Care Index stands at 48 / 100 for England, derived from the CQC National Maternity Inspection Programme (131 hospital maternity services inspected, August 2022 to December 2023). 4% were rated outstanding, 48% good, 36% requires improvement and 12% inadequate — and the safety sub-index is just 39 / 100. Source: Care Quality Commission (OGL v3.0).

Source:Gera Maternity Care Index — derived from CQC maternity ratings·as of August 2022 to December 2023updated on CQC release (last: 3 July 2026)

Gera Maternity Care Index48 / 100England — poor (widespread requires-improvement) (higher = better CQC ratings)How this index is calculated

The index weights CQC’s four rating bands (Outstanding 4, Good 3, Requires improvement 2, Inadequate 1), takes the weighted mean across the published distribution and rescales it onto 0–100. Every input is CQC’s real published figure; only the weighting and rescaling are Gera’s, and both are set out in full in the methodology.

Overall index

48 / 100

poor (widespread requires-improvement)

Safety sub-index

39 / 100

CQC "Safe" question

Good or outstanding

52.0%

of inspected services

Below "good"

48.0%

requires improvement / inadequate

CQC maternity ratings, by key question

CQC published a full four-band rating split for the overall rating and the safe key question. Of 131 maternity services inspected, 4% were rated outstanding overall and 12% inadequate — but no service was rated outstanding for safety, and 65.0% were rated requires improvement or inadequate for being safe.

Gera Maternity Care Index by CQC key question, England (August 2022 to December 2023)
CQC key question	Maternity Index	Outstanding	Good	Requires improvement	Inadequate
Overall	48 / 100	4%	48%	36%	12%
Safe	39 / 100	0%	35%	47%	18%

Percentages are CQC’s own published figures for the 131 inspected maternity locations; the “Maternity Index” column is the Gera-computed 0–100 score for that distribution (see methodology).

What women said — CQC 2024 Maternity Survey

CQC’s separate 2024 Maternity Survey asked 120 NHS trusts’ patients about their experience (published 28 November 2024). These patient-reported figures are shown alongside the index but are not an input to the ratings-based score.

CQC 2024 Maternity Survey — selected national results (% of respondents)
Experience measure	2024	2023
“Definitely” had confidence and trust in staff — antenatal care	70%	71%
Had confidence and trust in staff — during labour and birth	77%	78%
“Always” able to get help from staff — during labour and birth	64%	—
Had confidence and trust in staff — postnatal care	69%	72%
Saw or spoke to a midwife as much as wanted — after the birth	60%	63%
“Always” given the information and explanations needed	58%	60%

Per-trust and per-region ratings — data loading

A hospital-level and NHS-region breakdown is built from the CQC “Care directory with ratings” open-data file (the maternity service rows), the same monthly CQC extract behind GeraClinic’s CQC ratings pages. To avoid publishing any hospital-level number that cannot be traced to that real file, the per-trust league table is shown here only once wired — the national picture above is the verified figure today. The pending domains CQC did not publish a full national four-band split for are: Well-led, Effective, Caring, Responsive.

How the index is built (methodology) →

Gera Maternity Care Index: FAQs

What is the Gera Maternity Care Index?: The Gera Maternity Care Index (GMCI) is a single 0–100 score that summarises how NHS maternity services in England are rated by the Care Quality Commission (CQC). 100 would mean every service is rated outstanding; lower means more services rated requires improvement or inadequate. It is computed transparently from the real CQC rating distribution published in CQC's National Maternity Inspection Programme (131 hospital maternity locations, August 2022 to December 2023). The national overall index is 48 / 100.
How is the index calculated?: Each CQC rating is given a weight — Outstanding 4, Good 3, Requires improvement 2, Inadequate 1 — and we take the weighted mean rating across the distribution, then rescale that 1–4 range onto 0–100: GMCI = (meanWeight − 1) / 3 × 100, rounded to one decimal place. Every input is CQC's real published percentage; only the weighting and rescaling are Gera's, and both are fully disclosed on the methodology page. It is the same transparent method used for the Gera Provider Quality Score elsewhere on GeraClinic.
How safe are NHS maternity services in England?: CQC's National Maternity Inspection Programme rated no maternity service outstanding for being safe. 35% were rated good, 47% requires improvement and 18% inadequate for safety — so 65.0% of inspected services fell below the "good" safety standard. On the Gera Maternity Care Index the safety sub-score is 39 / 100, lower than the overall index of 48 / 100.
What did CQC find overall?: Of the 131 maternity locations inspected between August 2022 to December 2023, 4% were rated outstanding, 48% good, 36% requires improvement and 12% inadequate. That means 48.0% of inspected services were rated requires improvement or inadequate overall. CQC linked the findings to widespread issues with staffing, unsuitable estates and safety culture rather than isolated failings.
What do women say about their maternity care?: CQC's separate 2024 Maternity Survey (120 NHS trusts, published 28 November 2024) found 77% of women had confidence and trust in staff during labour and birth, but only 60% saw or spoke to a midwife as much as they wanted after the birth (down from 63% in 2023) and just 58% were always given the information and explanations they needed. Patient experience is reported alongside the index but is not an input to the ratings-based score.
Is a higher score good or bad?: Higher is better. A higher Gera Maternity Care Index means more services carry CQC's top ratings and fewer are rated requires improvement or inadequate. A score of 100 would mean every maternity service is rated outstanding; no national maternity picture currently approaches that.
How often is the index updated?: The National Maternity Inspection Programme was a one-off national review (inspections August 2022 to December 2023, report published September 2024), so its distribution is fixed to that programme. Gera refreshes the index when CQC publishes new national maternity analysis, and the per-trust ratings layer is designed to load from the CQC "Care directory with ratings" open-data file, which CQC updates monthly.
Does this rank individual hospitals or trusts?: Not yet. The figures here are the national picture from CQC's inspection programme. A per-trust and per-region ratings layer is built from the CQC "Care directory with ratings" open data (the maternity service rows) and is clearly labelled while it is wired in — no hospital-level number is shown until it can be traced to that real CQC file. For your own hospital, always check its latest rating on the CQC website.
What does the index NOT show?: It covers England only and is based on CQC's ratings of hospital maternity services, not clinical outcomes such as mortality or morbidity, and not your own care. It is a summary of a national inspection programme, not real-time monitoring, and it is information — not medical advice. For any concern about your pregnancy or birth, speak to your midwife, GP or maternity unit.

Working in or heading into UK maternity care?

CQC has linked maternity pressures to chronic midwife and nurse recruitment and retention. If you are a midwife or nurse — including internationally-qualified professionals independently considering the UK — GeraClinic's pathway pages explain NMC registration and the route into NHS maternity roles. Gera does not actively recruit from countries on the WHO health-workforce safeguard list.

Midwife pathways to the UK Nursing pathways to the UK

Related NHS data

Sources

The Gera Maternity Care Index is computed only from the real CQC publications below — every figure on this page traces back to them. The index (the weighting and rescaling) is the Gera contribution and is fully specified on the methodology page; no value is invented. GeraClinic is a private telemedicine service and is not part of, or affiliated with, the NHS or the CQC.

Contains public sector information published by Care Quality Commission and licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Source: CQC — National review of maternity services in England 2022 to 2024 (National Maternity Inspection Programme) (August 2022 – December 2023, published September 2024).

Contains public sector information published by Care Quality Commission and licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Source: CQC — Maternity Survey 2024 (2024, published 28 November 2024).

Contains public sector information published by Gera Systems and licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0 (source data). Source: Gera Maternity Care Index — derived from CQC maternity ratings (August 2022 to December 2023, published 3 July 2026).