Better births – but why not better postnatal care?

National Health Service (NHS) organisations that provide maternity care in England are in the process of transforming local maternity systems (LMS) in response to the publication of ‘Better Births: Improving outcomes of maternity services in England. A Five Year Forward View for maternity care’ (NHS England, 2016). Since the report's publication, a series of initiatives have been launched across England to support local service providers to meet the ambition of ‘Better Births’, alongside similar initiatives for maternity care in Scotland and Wales