Royal Oldham Hospital admits causing the death of a baby who suffered 'catastrophic head injuries'

The Pennine Acute Hospitals NHS Trust has admitted causing the death of baby Thomas Beaty who suffered "catastrophic head injuries" caused when doctors pushed him back into the womb during a forceps delivery that went wrong five times at the Royal Oldham Hospital.

Thomas died 26 hours after an emergency Caesarean section in April 2014.

His parents Hannah, 33, and Martin, 35, were "saddened" at the hospital's "inevitable" admission.

Martin previously said he felt the standard of care Thomas received gave him “zero confidence” in the organisation.

Greater Manchester North coroner Lisa Hashmi wrote to the trust, the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (RCOG) and the Department of Health, after the inquest in April.

She stated that guidance on forceps use "at the time of Thomas's birth was found to be ambiguous, misleading and potentially open to misinterpretation".

The Beaty family's solicitors Slater Gordon said the trust admitted the baby died as a result of head injuries sustained from the repeated use of forceps and being pushed back into the womb.

The inquest recorded a narrative verdict.

Hannah said: "We wanted answers, we wanted the hospital to be accountable for what they had done, but we also wanted change so that other families wouldn't have to go through what happened to us."

"I don't think forceps should be used at all, not if there's even the slightest risk that another baby could suffer like our son," she said.

The Pennine Acute Hospitals NHS Trust, which comprises The Royal Oldham Hospital, Rochdale Infirmary North Manchester General Hospital and Fairfield General Hospital in Bury has apologised and has introduced new guidelines for using forceps.