A series of films to help future-proof local maternity services has been launched in West Yorkshire and Harrogate.
The films and new website are part of a system-wide plan to tackle the issue of an ageing workforce within maternity services.
They have been launched by the West Yorkshire and Harrogate Local Maternity and Neonatal System (LMNS) and promote the breadth of maternity roles available and information on how to choose a career in maternity care.
The LMNS identified that in the coming years, trusts in the region could see an increase in highly skilled and experienced midwives retiring, with 40 being the average age of a midwife and 8% of the workforce now aged over 55.
The LMNS hopes the films will bring more diversity to the maternity workforce in Harrogate and West Yorkshire to more accurately reflect the communities they work with.
The new films celebrate the diversity of the work and the supportive nature of the profession, where strong relationships form between teams, colleagues and the people and families they support. Many involved in the filming described their job as a privilege.
The website covers everything potential candidates might need to know from routes into maternity, links to local universities and signposting to current job opportunities across the six local hospitals.
Debi Gibson, director of midwifery for the West Yorkshire and Harrogate LMNS, said: ‘We hope through the films people can see the positive culture, career progression opportunities and the many ways a career in midwifery can help them to develop professionally and personally.’
