Consultant Midwives in the UK: A Mapping Project of Clinical Leadership

The role of the consultant midwife was developed in 1999 by the Department of Health in response to demands for clinical leadership within midwifery. Since inception 18 years ago, there has been little focus on the development and changes to the role in response to the changing demands of the NHS. In late 2016, the Consultant Midwives National Forum Group, in conjunction with the RCM, carried out a mapping exercise all four countries of the United Kingdom. This is the first time that mapping of the consultant midwife role has been carried out. Traditionally, consultant midwives occupied specialities related to normal birth and public health. But the initial findings suggest that the role has changed with a growing diversity of clinical specialities and clinical leadership focus. The data suggests that there are 72 consultant midwives in the UK and 53% of them are aged 50+ with 23% already 55+ and nearing retirement. This potentially indicates a future skills gap for the role of consultant midwife and further work is needed to examine the succession planning of the role. This project aims to highlight such issues and recommend areas for further examination and research.