Donna Ockenden is a British

midwife A midwife is a health professional who cares for mothers and newborns around childbirth, a specialization known as midwifery. The education and training for a midwife concentrates extensively on the care of women throughout their lifespan; co ...

and

community activist Activism (or Advocacy) consists of efforts to promote, impede, direct or intervene in social, political, economic or environmental reform with the desire to make changes in society toward a perceived greater good. Forms of activism range fro ...

. She was commissioned in 2016 by the then UK Secretary for Health and Social Care,

Jeremy Hunt Jeremy Richard Streynsham Hunt (born 1 November 1966) is a British politician who has served as Chancellor of the Exchequer since 14 October 2022. He previously served in the Cabinet as Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport ...

, to chair an independent review into

maternity services A maternity hospital specializes in caring for women during pregnancy and childbirth. It also provides care for newborn infants, and may act as a centre for clinical training in midwifery and obstetrics. Formerly known as lying-in hospitals, most o ...

Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital NHS Trust Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital NHS Trust is the main provider of hospital services for Shropshire, Telford and Wrekin and North Powys. It runs the Royal Shrewsbury Hospital, the Princess Royal Hospital in Telford, Oswestry Maternity Unit, and ...

. Initial findings of the

Ockenden Review In 2017 Rhiannon Davies, her husband Richard and two other bereaved parents, Kayleigh and Colin Griffiths asked the UK health secretary, Jeremy Hunt, to set up a public inquiry into maternity services at Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital NHS Trust. ...

were reported in December 2020, with a final report published on 17th March 2022. In May 2022, it was announced by NHS England that Donna Ockenden would chair an independent review of maternity services at Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust (NUH). This review commenced at the beginning of September 2022. In February 2021, Donna Ockenden was named as a Fellow of the Royal Society for the Encouragement of Arts, Manufacture and Commerce. The fellowship is awarded by the Royal Society of Arts (RSA), and is limited to individuals determined to have made outstanding achievements to social progress and development. The accolade has been awarded to Donna Ockenden for her work which has touched the lives of many throughout her career. Her work has been a catalyst for change to improve the quality of care for a broad section of people who use healthcare services across the UK. Donna Ockenden has been appointed as honorary president o
Baby Lifeline
the mother and baby charity founded 40 years ago by Judy Ledger following the personal tragedy of losing three premature babies.

Life

In 1985, aged 18, Ockenden found herself homeless in Bristol, with responsibility for her four younger siblings, aged four to sixteen.Amazing volunteers and businesses working together to help homeless
''Chichester Post'', 21 June 2019. From 2013 to 2017 Ockenden was first clinical director of midwifery, jointly with a Co clinical director, Obstetrics at the London Strategic Clinical Network at

NHS England NHS England, officially the NHS Commissioning Board, is an executive non-departmental public body of the Department of Health and Social Care. It oversees the budget, planning, delivery and day-to-day operation of the commissioning side of the ...

. In 2015 the

Nursing and Midwifery Council The Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) is the regulator for nursing and midwifery professions in the UK. The NMC maintains a register of all nurses, midwives and specialist community public health nurses and nursing associates eligible to prac ...

also appointed her as a Senior Midwifery Adviser in chief to the Chief Executive. Ockenden lives in Chichester. In January 2016 she and her daughters founded The Four Streets Project, a charity to support Chichester's homeless population. She also started the Community Coat Rack, which gives free coats to those in need in the winter.

Chichester District Council Chichester is a local government district in West Sussex, England. Its council is based in the city of Chichester and the district also covers a large rural area to the north. History The district was formed on 1 April 1974, under the Local Go ...

gave Ockenden a civic award in February 2019. In 2022, Ockenden was named in the Vogue 25 '''honouring the women shaping and remaking Britain in 2022. Also in 2022, Ockenden was named in the HSJ Top 100 Healthcare Leaders across the UK

References

External links

donnaockenden.com

ockendenmaternityreview.org.uk

Donna Ockenden FRSA
on

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Ockendon, Donna Year of birth missing (living people) 1960s births Living people English midwives