The future of supervision

There will be surprise and shock among UK midwives following the Nursing and Midwifery Council's decision that statutory supervision of midwives should no longer be part of its legal framework (NMC, 2015). This decision by the NMC comes as a result of an independent review of statutory supervision by the King's Fund. The review was initiated as a result of a report by the Public Health Service Ombudsman (PHSO) for England into the maternity services at the University Hospitals of Morecombe Bay. Her report stated that she believed that there was a major flaw in midwifery regulation due to the delegated model of regulation. This referred to the investigatory powers held by supervisors of midwives and the local supervising authorities (LSA). During this whole process the Royal College of Midwives (RCM) has lobbied on behalf of its members and provided papers and letters to the King's Fund, the Public Administration Select Committee, the Chief Nursing Officer (CNO) England and the NMC Midwifery Committee, outlining the critical role supervision plays in protecting the public through the support it provides to midwives and women in their care.