Nottingham University Hospitals fined £1.6m after admitting to failings in three baby deaths
City Hospital in Nottingham (Credit LDRS)
By Joe Locker, Local Democracy Reporter
Nottingham University Hospitals Trust has been fined £1.6m after admitting it failed to provide safe care and treatment to three babies who died within four months of each other.
Adele O’Sullivan, Kahlani Rawson and Quinn Parker all died at Nottingham City Hospital in 2021.
Healthcare regulator the Care Quality Commission (CQC) brought charges against the hospital’s NHS trust for failing to provide safe care and treatment to the three babies and their mothers.
Charges were brought under the Health and Social Care Act for failure to provide safe maternity care and treatment resulting in a significant risk of avoidable harm and, in one case, actual avoidable harm.
The trust pleaded guilty to six charges put to it relating to the deaths, and the care of their mothers, at a hearing at Nottingham Magistrates’ Court on Monday (February 10).
District Judge Grace Leong sentenced the trust to a total fine of £1.6m at another hearing on today (February 12).
She said families had placed their trust in the system meant to protect them, but added: “That trust was broken”.
“There were serious failings in the care provided by Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust through its maternity unit, where the failures were avoidable and where they should not have happened,” she said.
“Three and a half years have gone by since the deaths of the babies, yet for the families… their grief remains as raw as ever.”
The court heard the fine was reduced from £5.5m, taking into account the trust’s financial position and guilty pleas.
NUH is facing a £100m budget deficit and is expecting to have to make £95m in cuts to services.
District Judge Leong said she was “acutely aware” a fine would impact the trust’s ability to deliver services and make improvements.
She further ordered the trust to pay a victim surcharge of £190 and prosecution costs of £67,755.23.
The first half must be paid by March 31, 2026, while the second half must be paid the following year on the same date.
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