CQC chief executive steps down amid Leeds maternity investigation

The chief executive of England’s hospital regulator has stepped down following the announcement of an independent inquiry into maternity care at the NHS trust he led for a decade.

Sir Julian Hartley raised concerns that his position at the Care Quality Commission (CQC) “may undermine trust and confidence” in the regulator.

He was previously chief executive of Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust for 10 years until 2023.

Earlier this week, Health Secretary Wes Streeting announced an inquiry into the trust, after a BBC investigation revealed the deaths of at least 56 babies and two mothers over the past five years may have been prevented.

Following the announcement, the parents said they felt gaslit, dismissed and even blamed for what went wrong.

Sir Julian said it was an “incredibly difficult decision”, but feels his current post “has become incompatible with the important conversations happening about care at Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust”, which includes the time he was chief executive there.

He said: “I am so sorry for the fact that some families suffered harm and loss during this time.

“I will be giving whatever support I can to the inquiry into maternity services at Leeds, so families get the transparency and answers that they need and deserve – and I want to avoid my connection with the trust impacting on CQC’s work to rebuild people’s confidence in the regulator.”

He added that he is “hugely proud” of his work at the CQC since he joined at the end of last year.

“I leave grateful for the part I was able to play and confident that the better approach being built will be owned, and informed, by colleagues, providers and stakeholders with a shared vision.”

Professor Sir Mike Richards, chair of the CQC, said: “While Sir Julian’s departure will be a huge loss to CQC, I understand his concerns that his previous role at Leeds Teaching Hospital NHS Trust may undermine trust and confidence in CQC’s regulation.

“I am grateful to him for making this unselfish decision in recognition of the need for the regulator to be visibly held to the highest standards.”

Recruitment for Sir Julian’s successor will begin shortly.

Mr Streeting told BBC Radio 4’s Woman’s Hour on Thursday that he is “drawing up a potential list” of candidates to lead the Leeds inquiry.

“I listened to families in Leeds last week about the sort of person they would want,” he said.

It comes amid calls from the families that Donna Ockenden should head the probe.

However, Mr Streeting said the senior midwife will not be appointed as she is leading work on maternity services in Nottingham, Shrewsbury and Telford.

He said: “If I could clone her, I would. But the challenge I’ve got – and it’s not just in Leeds, but in other parts of the country – because Donna has earned the trust of the families that she’s working with, everyone wants Donna.

“And I understand that, and I have huge respect for her, but I’ve got to make sure that when firstly protecting the work that Donna is already doing, but I’ve also got to build a wider team of people too.”

LTH is one of 14 trusts included in a rapid maternity investigation led by Baroness Amos, which was ordered by Mr Streeting last month.

He said: “I feel this enormous pressure on my shoulders to make sure that I’m doing everything I can, as fast as I can, to improve the quality of maternity services and Valerie Amos is a hugely experienced and respected leader, both in Government diplomacy and in higher education.”

Mr Streeting added: “We’ve also got the Leeds inquiry up and running because I was persuaded by families and by the data, that that trust is such an outlier – and it’s one of the largest trusts in Europe – that we had to look specifically at failures there.

“We’re going as quickly as we can. There is improvements taking place every day – 10,000 babies are born every week in this country, and the vast majority are delivered safely, without any problems.

“But I want to end this culture where we accept infant mortality in a way that other advanced economies and health systems simply do not do.”