COUNCILLOR Ed Tyldesley, the County Councillor for Chulmleigh & Landkey has stated: “We need answers, action, and a safe route to reopening of North Devon maternity services.

In a statement he writes: “The suspension of births at North Devon District Hospital has caused enormous concern across our communities. Expectant parents are facing longer journeys, greater uncertainty, and difficult decisions about their maternity care, often at one of the most vulnerable moments of their lives.

“On August 17, Devon County Council’s Health and Adult Care Scrutiny Committee held a special meeting lasting more than four hours to examine how this happened and what needs to happen next.

“I fully accept the clinical judgement that a service cannot continue when safe medical staffing cannot be guaranteed. My concern is how maternity services at one of the most geographically isolated acute hospitals in England became so fragile that the loss of a very small number of doctors resulted in births being suspended.

“RDUH told us that concerns about obstetric staffing have existed for years. A formal Business Continuity Plan was agreed in October 2025. The immediate crisis was then triggered by unexpected staff absence and the withdrawal of a locum, leaving the Trust unable to guarantee safe 24-hour obstetric medical cover.

“I am deeply concerned about the risks now being carried by women and families across rural Northern Devon, Cornwall, and Exmoor.

For some residents, reaching Barnstaple already takes over an hour. Travelling onwards to another consultant-led maternity unit could add another hour. “We’ve already seen the A361 fully closed twice since the announcement.

“There is also a danger that distance begins to influence the choices available to women about how they give birth. Interventions like inductions and c-sections are often clinically necessary and lifesaving. Every woman should have access to them when they are needed. However, I worry that women who might otherwise choose to wait for labour to begin naturally, or pursue a particular birth plan, could feel pressure to accept an intervention because they now live an hour or more from the hospital.”

Cllr Ed Tyldesley continued: “At the scrutiny meeting I also challenged the assumption that rural maternity services inevitably have to be this vulnerable. I raised the example of West Cumberland Hospital, which serves a similarly isolated population with a comparable number of births. Consultants there work within arrangements connecting the rural hospital with Cumberland Infirmary in Carlisle, helping to maintain staffing, skills and resilience.

“RDUH Chief Executive Sam Higginson acknowledged that the NHS may be too constrained by a national standard maternity model and questioned whether a stronger case should have been made earlier for a different approach in rural and coastal communities.

“I also raised North Devon’s voice within developing NHS clustering arrangements, as up until now our request has been denied. Currently, the new Integrated Care Board for Cornwall, Devon, and the Isles of Scilly will have no representation from Devon.

“The committee meets again on September 24. I will be looking for evidence of progress towards reopening, alongside scrutinising the impact the suspension is having on women, babies and families.”