Women in England can now use an online tool to refer themselves to their local maternity services, cutting out the need to see a GP first, under a new initiative being rolled across the NHS.
NHS England highlighted today that newly pregnant women could self-refer online to get their first midwife appointments quicker, ensuring the “best and most personalised care for their baby”.
“This new tool makes it easier than ever to book that all-important first maternity care appointment”
Kate Brintworth
The service has been implemented since the spring. Midwife leaders welcomed the move, overall, but cautioned that it could exacerbate health inequalities due to varied access to digital technology.
Under the initiative, by completing a short online form on NHS.uk, newly pregnant women across the country can now refer themselves directly to their local maternity services without seeing a GP first.
The new NHS England service also enables families to choose which trust to refer themselves to, helping them to “meet their midwife and begin NHS pregnancy care as early as possible”.
However, NHS England said anyone could still request to see their GP and those with other health conditions would still be encouraged to do so to discuss any changes to their existing care.
It said the move to speed up access to pregnancy care followed latest data showing only 62% of first appointments with maternity services happened within the first 10 weeks of pregnancy in 2023-24.
Early data shows that nearly 60,000 newly pregnant women have started their referral online since the new tool first began to be rolled out in March, according to NHS England.
Over three quarters of trusts in England are now connected to the service to support hundreds of thousands to access maternity services faster, noted the government arms’-length body.
In addition, NHS England said it estimated that the new service could lead to 180,000 fewer calls to GPs and up to 30,000 fewer general practice appointments each year.
Prior to launch of the new tool, women have been able to self-refer via local trust sites, but it’s estimated that only 50% of people were accessing these services directly.
Kate Brintworth, NHS England’s chief midwife, urged expectant mothers to refer themselves as early as possible to ensure the safest possible care and so that they can get the support they need.
She said: “This new tool makes it easier than ever to book that all-important first maternity care appointment.
“Making this process simpler at the touch of a button is a vital step in empowering women to take control of their pregnancy journey right from the very start,” she added.
Dr Claire Fuller, NHS England’s national medical director, said: “This quick and easy tool can help ease pressure on practice teams, who won’t need to make the referral themselves.
“By freeing up that time, there will hopefully be a benefit for other patients who are looking to make an appointment with their GP,” she said.
Health and social care secretary Wes Streeting added: “Early pregnancy should be about joy and excitement – not wrestling with NHS bureaucracy to book a midwife appointment.
“That’s why we’ve overhauled the online referral system. No more endless phone calls or form-filling. Just a simple online service that lets you book those crucial first appointments with a few clicks.”
The Royal College of Midwives (RCM) welcomed the service’s rollout, noting thousands more families would be able to meet their midwife earlier and start their pregnancy care without delay.
But the RCM called on NHS England to be clear that the initiative would not widen inequalities, flagging that not all women have easy access to smartphones and technology.
There are also concerns that those with visual impairment, and women whose first language is not English, will be at a disadvantage, said the college.
Abbie Aplin, director of maternity improvement and partnerships at the RCM, said: “Giving women more control and more agency over their care during pregnancy, labour, birth and the postnatal period can only be a good thing.
“Midwives are best placed to support women to make informed choices about their care, so the earlier the better in terms of access,” she said.
“Early contact with a midwife is vital to identify high risk pregnancies, arrange essential antenatal screenings and build a trusted, personalised relationship between midwives, pregnant women and their families.”
She added: “We do have to be mindful, though, of those who don’t have easy access to smartphones and technology.
“We already see significant inequalities of outcome for women living with social deprivation so the NHS needs to ensure that those gaps aren’t widened yet further.”
Ruth Rankine, primary care director at the NHS Confederation, said: “This is a very welcome step that will make it simpler for pregnant women to get their first midwife appointments as well as reducing the workload on general practice.
“This announcement gives patients another route to access the care they need as part of the government’s ambition to move towards a digital NHS,” she said.
“We already know the NHS App is becoming the first port of call for many patients and giving people more choices will allow them to take even more control of their healthcare.”
Dr Jyotsna Vohra, director of research, programmes and impact for charity Tommy’s said: “Being able to self-refer online for a first midwife appointment will be a positive choice for many, as long as the system is as simple and user-friendly as possible.
“Early and personalised support is key to making pregnancy and birth safe for everyone, and to reducing the inequities that put some groups of people at higher risk of complications and loss than others.”
