NHS England has today announced the full list of members for the national maternity review, a major review of maternity services set to modernise care for women and babies across the country. The review will be led by Baroness Julia Cumberlege and its terms of reference were published last month. Here she outlines its importance:

I’m delighted that the national maternity review is now officially underway, with the membership of the core review team finalised.

We held our first meeting on 23 April. This provided us with the opportunity to think about the huge responsibility we have undertaken. We will set out to make a demonstrable difference to the experience and outcomes that women, their babies and their families can expect from maternity care in England.

We had a wide ranging and thoughtful initial discussion. Important, recurring themes included, but were not limited to, the following:

• the importance of team working, which must be learned and assured
• the need for care to maximise positive outcomes – both physical health and mental wellbeing-  for the mother, the baby and the family as a whole
• the opportunities for reducing avoidable harm
• the need to provide women with as much information as they need in order to understand and be able to make their choices
• the importance of seamless care and the need for governance arrangements to achieve this

Most importantly, the team were clear that the success of the review will be entirely dependent on the breadth and depth of our engagement going forward. Our immediate priority will be to clearly set out how we will achieve this and ensure people can get involved.

In the meantime, if you want to be kept informed about the progress of the review, including receiving details of how you will be able to input into the review and have your voice heard, please send us your contact details to england.maternityreview@nhs.net.

National Maternity Review full list of members

• Baroness Julia Cumberlege (Chair)
• Sir Cyril Chantler (Vice Chair)
• Professor Cathy Warwick, Royal College of Midwives, Chief Executive
• Dr David Richmond, Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists, President
• Annie Francis, Neighbourhood Midwives, Chief Executive
• Sarah Noble, Consultant Midwife, Birmingham Women’s NHS Foundation Trust
• Elizabeth Duff, NCT, Senior Policy Adviser
• Alison Baum, Best Beginnings, Chief Executive
• Rowan Davies, Mumsnet, Head of Policy and Campaigns
• James Titcombe, Morecambe Bay parent and CQC adviser on safety
• Dr Alan Fenton, Consultant Neonatal Paediatrician, Newcastle-Upon-Tyne Hospitals NHS FT
• Professor James Walker,  Professor of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, University of Leeds
• Dr Catherine Calderwood, National Clinical Director for Maternity and Women’s Health
• Dr Jocelyn Cornwell, Point of Care Foundation, Chief Executive
• Sir Sam Everington, Chair, Tower Hamlets CCG and board member of NHS Clinical Commissioners
• Professor Dame Donna Kinnair, Clinical Director Emergency Department, Barking, Havering and Redbridge University Hospitals
• Melany Pickup, Chief Executive, Warrington and Halton Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust