Who are Supervisors of Midwives?

Supervisors of Midwives are experienced practicing midwives who have undertaken additional education and training to support, guide and supervise midwives. Every midwife must have a named Supervisor of Midwives.

What is the role of a Supervisor of Midwives?

Supervisors of Midwives develop and maintain safe practice to ensure protection of you, your baby and family. They meet regularly with midwives and ensure a high standard of care is provided.

The Supervisors are independent of the employer and often work in a team. Their role is different to the midwifery manager who is responsible to the employer to make sure that maternity services run effectively.

The Supervisor of Midwives is accountable to the Local Supervising Authority (LSA) and is supported in their role by the Local Supervising Authority Midwifery Officer (LSA MO).

What do Supervisors of Midwives do?

Supervisors of Midwives give guidance and support to both midwives and you. They support the practice of midwives and ensure that the care offered is right for you, is given in the right place, by the right person and that it will benefit you and your baby.

They act as positive role models for midwives, guiding and supporting them in developing skills and expertise. If a midwife requires additional education, training and support in practice, a Supervisor can recommend a formal programme of supervised practice. (information sourced from Nursing and Midwifery Council 2008)

For most queries and concerns, your midwife is the best person to talk to.  

For ongoing or unresolved problems, a supervisor of midwives is available and can be contacted through the hospital switchboard (0121) 472 1377

For further information on the role of the supervisor of midwives, please see the West Midlands LSA (Local Supervising Authority) website.  You can also download the Nursing & Midwifery Council (NMC) PDF leaflet on how Supervisors of Midwives can help you here

This page was last modified on Fri Jul 23 2010