Stroud families will once again be able to choose round-the-clock support for labour and birth when a new Community Birth Team launches across Gloucestershire on January 4, 2027.
The service will support women planning to give birth at home or at Stroud Maternity Unit. Its introduction marks the return of the county’s home birth service after a year-long suspension, according to the announcement published by Stroud Times.
What is changing for Stroud families?
The new team will provide care 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Midwives will be based within Community Birth Teams and will provide labour and birth care at Stroud Maternity Unit as well as supporting home births.
Antenatal and postnatal services will continue at Stroud as before. The Stroud Hospitals League of Friends will also continue providing additional support services.
The changes are part of a wider reorganisation of maternity provision across the county. The Cheltenham Birth Centre, also known as the Aveta Unit, is due to reopen on February 1, 2027, after being closed for five years.
Reassurance over Stroud Maternity Unit
The plans have been welcomed by the Stroud Hospitals League of Friends, which said the announcement offered important reassurance about the future of Stroud Maternity Unit.
Dr Susie Weir, the League’s lead trustee for maternity, said the new model would give local families greater choice over where they give birth. She said: “This will give Stroud families and expectant mothers the choice to plan their delivery at home or in the Stroud community birthing unit, with confidence.”
Dr Weir said the announcement strongly supported the maternity unit’s role in community healthcare. She added that it was encouraging to know the unit was safe from closure.
The League said the new service model was intended to create a safe, resilient and sustainable unit for the future. It also said the approach could help increase the number of births taking place in community settings.
Potential impact on Gloucester Maternity Unit
The League of Friends believes a rise in community and home births could help ease pressure on Gloucester Maternity Unit. Dr Weir said other maternity units that had adopted the community birthing team approach had seen more births taking place in community units and at home.
“This will provide greater choice in the place of birth, and potentially reduce the burden on the Gloucester Maternity Unit,” she said.
The organisation said it was looking forward to seeing the results of the transition in the New Year. The Community Birth Team is due to begin operating on January 4, followed by the planned reopening of the Cheltenham Birth Centre on February 1.