(from left) Joy Payne, head of midwifery, Tracey Nash, associate head of nursing and midwifery and Silja Eveson, RCM health and safety representative midwife.

Heart of England NHS Foundation Trust is working with The Royal College of Midwives (RCM) to improve the support available for midwives and maternity colleagues.

The Trust’s maternity services have signed the RCM’s Caring for You Charter, which aims to improve the health, safety and wellbeing of midwives. This supports and enables them to continue providing the highest levels of maternity care for women and their families.

Launched in June, the campaign is aiming to get NHS organisations across the UK to sign up to the Caring for You Charter.

Joy Payne, head of midwifery at the Trust, said: “Signing the Charter means the Trust will commit to working with the RCM’s health and safety representatives to improve midwives, student midwives and maternity support workers’ health, safety and wellbeing at work. This will in turn provide even better care for our women, babies and families as staff feel listened to and supported.

“When heads of midwifery and RCM health and safety representatives work in partnership and take action on health, safety and wellbeing makes a difference. Stress levels are lower, health and wellbeing is better and more importantly the care of women and their families will improve.”

RCM health and safety representative midwife Silja Eveson is working in partnership with Joy Payne and together they signed the Charter.  Joy said: “Signing up to the RCM Caring for Your Charter shows our commitment to our families and our staff, ensuring their health and wellbeing is better. I am delighted to be involved.”

RCM regional officer for the West Midlands, Julia Ellis, said: “I am delighted that the Trust has signed the Charter. They have a committed team of midwives and maternity support workers at the Trust. This is a very positive move and I welcome their commitment to staff and the people they care for.”

When signing the charter, organisations are committing to five key principles:

• Work in partnership with the RCM Health and Safety Representative to develop and implement an action plan about health, safety and wellbeing issues that are important to the maternity workforce and maternity service users.
• Ensure that midwives and maternity support workers have access to a variety of shift patterns and flexible working and promote a positive workplace culture around working time including taking breaks.

• Foster a positive working environment for all by signing up to the RCM/RCOG statement of commitment calling for zero tolerance policy on undermining and bullying behaviours.

• Enable midwives and maternity support workers to access occupational health and other organisational policies for their mental and physical health, safety and wellbeing.

• Nurture a compassionate and supportive workplace that cares for midwives and maternity support workers so that they can care for women and their families.