Women’s experiences of maternity care have improved over the past three years, but progress is needed in some critical areas, the findings of a survey published by the Care Quality Commission (CQC) show.

The 2013 survey of women’s experiences highlights concerns around continuity of care, support during labour and birth and cleanliness of hospitals.

The survey received responses from more than 23,000 women who had a baby in February this year and it covers all aspects of maternity provision; antenatal care, care during labour and birth, and postnatal care.

Almost 140 acute NHS trusts took part and their individual reports will help them compare their labour and birth services with those elsewhere in the country to identify good and poor performance. The findings include:

• More women than in the 2010 survey felt they were always involved in decisions about their care, both antenatally (77 per cent) and during labour and birth (74 per cent)

• More women than in the 2010 survey said that most of the time they were able to move around and find a position that made them most comfortable during labour and birth (71 per cent)

• More women said they definitely had confidence and trust in the staff caring for them during labour and birth, up from 73 per cent in 2010 to 78 per cent

• More women than the 2010 survey reported that they were left alone at a time that worried them during labour and birth, up from 22 per cent to 25 per cent

• Almost one in five women said their concerns during labour and birth were not taken seriously (19 per cent)