Welcome to our Maternity Unit
We provide maternity care for nearly 6000 women and their babies each year during pregnancy, labour, birth and up until one month after birth.
During and after pregnancy, we offer both midwifery-led and consultant-led care and our teams are multidisciplinary, which means all the care you need is provided within the maternity wards.
Our midwives look after women at the hospital antenatal clinic, local GP surgeries and children’s centres.
We provide a home birth service and hospital-based care during labour and birth. In addition, Homerton is a leading regional neonatal centre and we will be able to provide the highest quality specialist care for your baby after birth if needed.
Please note, we are a teaching hospital and as such, students work alongside qualified practitioners in providing your care. You will be asked for your consent for the student to be present or participate in your care.
We appreciate that this is challenging time and that you may be anxious about attending Homerton or about the care you will receive when you are with us. Whether you are attending for antenatal appointments, scans, during labour, birth or the early postnatal period, you will be met with dedicated professionals who will have the skills, resources and equipment, to provide a safe and caring environment for you and your baby.
Maternity care is essential and has been developed over many years to reduce complications in pregnant women and babies. We follow Public Health England infection prevention and control guidance stringently, use appropriate PPE and have made significant changes to both the environment of the hospital and visiting arrangements promote social distancing. It is therefore vital that you continue to see us for all planned care.
It is particularly important that you do not delay seeking help if you notice any emergency signs, such as significant changes in the baby’s movement, pain, swelling, redness, ache or tenderness in one leg, fluid leakage or bleeding, significant itching, heart palpitations, persistent headache, blurred vision, flashing lights or pain under the ribs. If anything listed occur, please call Delivery suite immediately on 0208 510 7351/7352 .
You can contact a midwife for advice or support via the Homerton Maternity Helpline;
0208 510 5955 from 10am - 6pm each day
or via email on huh-tr.maternityhelpline@nhs.net
Changes to having your baby with us from 1 June 2025
From 1 June 2025, Homerton Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust is temporarily capping maternity bookings and will not be providing new maternity appointments for women and birthing people living outside of the North East London area.
We have seen a rise in people wanting to use our maternity services and this temporary cap has been put in place to ensure we can maintain safe, high-quality care.
Who is affected?
If you live outside the North East London area, (this does not include City & Hackney, Tower Hamlets, Newham, Barking & Dagenham, Havering, Redbridge, and Waltham Forest), unfortunately we will not be able to provide you with maternity care unless there are exceptional circumstances due to medical complexity. We will also be unable to accept late transfers of care from any other maternity unit after 36 weeks of pregnancy, unless you are a City & Hackney resident.
Who is not affected?
- People within the North East London area. This means those who live in City & Hackney, Tower Hamlets, Newham, Barking & Dagenham, Havering, Redbridge, and Waltham Forest are not affected.
- Anyone who is currently having their maternity care with us is not affected.
- People who have been referred to us for complex pregnancy or neonatal care are not affected.
Clinical exceptions
We will continue to accept referrals from doctors and maternity units for those people who live outside of North East London with a medical condition requiring specialist input, such as those under the care of Fetal Medicine or the Neonatal Unit, which can only be provided at Homerton.
Alternative maternity services
If you live outside of North East London and are unable to book your pregnancy with us, please speak to your GP or contact your local maternity unit as soon as you find out you are pregnant. Other maternity units in North East London remain open to new referrals. It is important to book your pregnancy care early to allow time for appointments and screening tests.
FAQs
1. Why is Homerton Healthcare limiting maternity bookings for out-of-area service users?
We have experienced a steady rise in out-of-area maternity bookings, which now make up 16% of our total births. This restriction ensures we can maintain safe, high-quality care.
2. Who counts as “out of area”?
Homerton Maternity provides care for families living within Hackney, City of London, and parts of south Waltham Forest. We can also support families choosing to come to us from the North East London area, which includes Waltham Forest, Tower Hamlets, Newham, Barking & Dagenham, Havering, and Redbridge. If you live outside of these areas, and you make a referral to our service, this will unfortunately be declined, unless you have a medical condition requiring specialist input which can only be provided at Homerton.
3. I’m already booked at Homerton. Will this affect me?
No. If your booking has already been accepted, you can continue your care at Homerton as planned.
4. I have a high-risk pregnancy. Can I still be referred to Homerton?
We will continue to accept referrals from other areas that have been made by your doctor or maternity team, such as those with complex pregnancies who are receiving care from Fetal Medicine or the Neonatal Unit.
5. Can I transfer my maternity care from another maternity unit to Homerton Maternity?
Any pregnant person who lives within North East London can transfer their maternity care from another maternity unit to Homerton Marternity before 36 weeks of pregnancy. After 36 weeks of pregnancy, we will be unable to accept any transfers of care unless the pregnant person is a City & Hackney resident.
7. Where else can I go for maternity care?
If you are affected, we recommend discussing your options with your GP or local maternity unit. It is important you book your maternity care as soon as you find out you are pregant so that appointments and screening checks can be arranged as early as possible. Other maternity units in North East London are continuing to accept referrals. For more information, please visit: https://northeastlondon.icb.nhs.uk/service/maternity-services/
8. Who made this decision?
The decision was made jointly between Homerton Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust and NHS commissioners, and is based on capacity and safety considerations. This is to ensure we can provide families and babies the safest care possible.
9. Is there a cancellations list I can be added to?
We don’t currently keep a cancellations list.