BPAS Comment on CQC Review
6 June 2024
The British Pregnancy Advisory Service (BPAS) has welcomed the recent report from the Care Quality Commission (CQC) following their review of BPAS governance and leadership. This report, conducted in April 2024, highlights the substantial progress that has been made in strengthening the oversight of risk and enhancing support for staff in delivering high-quality care. As a result the warning notice in place has been lifted.
Heidi Stewart, Chief Executive of BPAS, said:
"We are delighted that the CQC has recognised the significant improvements we have implemented across our services. The removal of the formal warning notice is a testament to the hard work and dedication of our entire BPAS team.
"Our focus remains on delivering sustainable and high-quality care. We are committed to continuing to embed effective governance systems and processes across all our services, ensuring that policies and procedures are consistent and that risks are effectively managed at every level.
“We will continue to work closely with the CQC to maintain and build upon these improvements.”
Key improvements noted in the CQC review include:
- Enhanced Executive Leadership: A new executive leadership structure has been established, ensuring greater clinical expertise at a senior level to support the delivery of high-quality care across all services.
- Strengthened Governance Arrangements: There is now a better understanding of governance arrangements and clearer lines of accountability between the executive team and the board of trustees.
- Improved Information Flow: Operational issues and performance data are now more effectively discussed and scrutinised by the board of trustees.
- Updated Recruitment Policies: Our fit and proper persons requirement (FPPR) policy has been updated to include appropriate recruitment checks for staff in all roles, in compliance with the NHS England FPPR Framework.
- Enhanced Incident Reporting: Incident reporting processes have been strengthened to ensure greater transparency, with increased clinical input into investigations and more effective organizational learning from incidents.
ENDS
For further information, please contact Georgina O’Reilly, BPAS Associate Director of Campaigns and Communications (maternity cover), on georgina.oreilly@bpas.org or 07384 891886.
Notes to editors:
The CQC Press Release and Report can be found here: CQC reports on a review of leadership at the British Pregnancy Advisory Service - Care Quality Commission
About BPAS
The British Pregnancy Advisory Service, BPAS, is a charity that sees over 100,000 women a year for reproductive healthcare services including pregnancy counselling, abortion care, miscarriage management and contraception at clinics across Great Britain.
BPAS exists to further women’s reproductive choices. We believe all women should have the right to make their own decisions in and around pregnancy, from the contraception they use to avoid pregnancy right the way through to how they decide to feed their newborn baby, with access to evidence-based information to underpin their choices and high-quality services and support to exercise them.
BPAS also runs the Centre for Reproductive Research and Communication, CRRC. Through rigorous multidisciplinary research and impactful communication, the CRRC aims to inform policy, practice, and public discourse. You can find out more here.