Closed consultation

Coronial investigations of stillbirths

From:
Ministry of Justice and Department of Health and Social Care
Published
26 March 2019
Last updated
7 December 2023 — See all updates
This was published under the 2016 to 2019 May Conservative government

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Coronial investigations of stillbirths: factual summary of consultation responses

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Detail of feedback received

Two consultation documents - a longer and shorter version - were published. Four stakeholder workshops were held across England and Wales to discuss the consultation, involving 63 attendees spanning a wide range of stakeholder groups. There were 334 written responses to the consultation.

The findings of the consultation were complex: there were mixed views about proposals that coroners should have a role in stillbirth investigations and, where views were supportive, about the way in which coronial investigations would be carried out.

Some respondents were supportive of the proposal for coroners to have a role in investigating stillbirths. However, many of those same respondents did not agree with the proposed way in which coroners would conduct their investigations. For example, support was caveated with concerns about:

  • consent
  • the length of inquest process
  • the potential issue of inflicting blame on families

Other key issues raised by respondents included:

  • the potential duplication of investigations run by coroners and other maternity investigations
  • resourcing of coronial and paediatric pathology services (and other clinical staff)
  • the potential for findings to be inconclusive
  • the role of coroners in identifying and disseminating clinical learning points

Summary

This consultation seeks views on proposals for introducing coronial investigations of stillbirth cases in England and Wales.

This consultation was held on another website.

This consultation ran from
to

Consultation description

The government is consulting on a number of proposals that aim to:

  • bring greater independence to the way stillbirths are investigated
  • ensure transparency and enhance the involvement of bereaved parents in stillbirth investigation processes, including in the development of recommendations aimed at improving maternity care
  • effectively disseminate learning from investigations across the health system to help prevent future avoidable stillbirths

Updates to this page

Published 26 March 2019
Last updated 7 December 2023 + show all updates

  1. Added a factual summary of consultation responses to the public feedback (feedback received) section.

  2. First published.

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