Managed by a team of highly skilled and experienced community midwives and dedicated maternity support workers, the Cotswold Birth Centre is a small, local and accessible place providing a home from home setting which is welcoming and supportive for women and their families. We offer continuity of care and a sensitive, individualised approach to many low risk women who do not need to give birth in
hospital. Women experiencing complications in their pregnancies can receive their antenatal and postnatal care at our centre where their midwife will communicate with their hospital based obstetrician to provide care as part of a multiprofessional team. Services offered:
Antenatal care – women can receive all of their antenatal care at the centre including the initial booking appointment and subsequent routine appointments. We welcome women to book extra appointments with us if they have any queries or concerns about their pregnancy, we can assess them and offer reassurance, referring them for further care at the hospital if required. Our team of community midwives cover those registered with the following GP surgeries: Chipping Norton, Bloxham, Hook Norton, Charlbury, Wychwood, Woodstock and Deddington. Pre-birth courses are available to first time parents for free, please contact us or ask your Midwife how to book these. Care in labour – Our centre is accessible 24 hours a day for low risk women to birth in a quiet and calm environment. The birth rooms are designed to help women relax and promote the release of natural pain relieving hormones. Women can use the pool for labour and birth and we can offer support on positions to labour in, aromatherapy, hypnobirthing, music, massage, TENS, Entonox (gas and air) and heat packs. We facilitate births at the centre and at home, supported by community midwives from our team and the surrounding areas, providing care to women from around the county. Most births are straightforward however our midwives and maternity support workers are trained to deal with emergencies and monitor women and babies regularly through labour. Complications are swiftly recognised and if we feel a woman or baby should be seen by a doctor then we will accompany them in an ambulance to the maternity unit at the John Radcliffe Hospital. Midwives are on call from home at night so women must call the Horton Delivery Suite before coming to the centre so we may meet them there and open the centre for them. Women with a straightforward pregnancy with no medical or obstetric problems and who go into labour between 37 and 42 weeks may birth at our centre. If you do not meet these conditions and still wish to have their baby with us please discuss this with your Midwife.
