National Research Programme Launches New Listen2Baby Toolkit to Improve Maternity Care

Published on Wednesday, 03 June 2026 Post

The Listen2Baby Toolkit, a new evidence-based initiative designed to improve the quality and consistency of intermittent auscultation (IA) fetal monitoring during labour, was officially launched in Birmingham on 20th May at an event attended by maternity practitioners, policy makers and women with lived experience.

Developed through a four-year NIHR-funded research programme, the Toolkit is grounded in extensive national research and co-design work involving midwives, obstetricians, women, researchers, and policy and NHS partners.

The launch event brought together stakeholders from across maternity services for a lively day of discussion and shared learning. Women's experience of fetal monitoring was encapsulated in a poem, read by Listen2Baby patient and public involvement leads, and an interactive performance by Progress Theatre brought the research findings to life. Listen2Baby Toolkit implementation leads from partner NHS Trusts shared their frontline experiences of using the Toolkit in practice. Policy stakeholders from NHS England and the Royal College of Midwives outlined how the Toolkit fits with national maternity care initiatives.

A Listen2Baby Toolkit launch event participant stated:

This was a fantastic event. For me, the take home message was the importance of putting the woman at the heart of our care […], I have left feeling completely empowered and inspired.

The research underpinning the toolkit identified significant challenges affecting IA practice across UK maternity services, including inconsistent training opportunities, environmental pressures and variation in confidence among staff. The full analysis has been published in BMJ Open: Facilitators and barriers to the practice of intermittent auscultation fetal monitoring in UK maternity services: a qualitative study using the Consolidated Framework for Implementation Research (CFIR) | BMJ Open

In response, the Listen2Baby Toolkit was developed as a practical, web-based package to support safer, more consistent care.

The Toolkit, which is free to use and can be accessed online https://listen2babytoolkit.npeu.ox.ac.uk/register, includes an organisational “Fitness Check”, implementation guidance, audit tools and evidence-based resources designed to help maternity services strengthen IA skills, improve communication with women and embed sustainable improvements in care.

Project lead, Associate Professor Rachel Rowe, said:

The Listen2Baby Toolkit represents a major step towards closing the gap between national guidance and day-to-day fetal monitoring practice and will make an important contribution alongside other national initiatives to improve maternity safety.