The Royal London antenatal care

Black pregnant woman on sofa

Choosing our hospital

Woman with baby on chest

Choosing our hospital

We offer personalised care to women and pregnant people

We are an accredited baby friendly hospital and our services were rated "good" by our regulators.

We offer a wide range of services throughout your pregnancy. You will be supported throughout your pregnancy and treated with dignity and respect.

If you choose to have your baby with us, our expert team of midwives and doctors will work with you to plan a safe and comfortable birth.

Depending on your preferences and your individual pregnancy, you can have your baby at home, in our Lotus Birth Centre, or the delivery suite at The Royal London Hospital.

Use our online form to refer yourself to our maternity team

Antenatal self referral form Royal London hospital [docx] 186KB

Clinics to support you during pregnancy

Antenatal clinic

All expecting parents are offered antenatal care with midwives, obstetricians and specialists tailored to your individual needs. At our antenatal clinics you can also discuss your birthing options.

Clinic hours

Clinics take place in local GP surgeries, family hubs as well as in the hospital. Your midwife will book and confirm the location and schedule of your appointments at your initial appointment. Most clinics take place between 8.40am and 5pm.

Some surgeries in the local area may provide extended opening hours. If you wish to discuss your appointment schedule or alter any appointments, please phone us on: 020 7480 4885.

Booking clinic

Booking clinics take place Monday – Friday between 8.40am – 2.40pm. This may be held at The Royal London or The Barkantine maternity centre. The location of this appointment does not reflect your final birth plan.

This is an important first meeting with the midwife and usually takes between one or two hours. At the booking clinic you will discuss your health, have your blood tests, ultrasound and you’ll be introduced to your midwifery team.

If you wish to have a screening test, consent for this will be gained during this clinic.

Your antenatal appointment schedule is located inside the front cover of your maternity notes. You will be given your maternity notes at the booking appointment which you must bring with you to each appointment.

Screening

You will be offered screening tests during pregnancy to identify any health problems that could affect you or your baby. The tests can help you make informed decisions about your pregnancy, tests or care.

We are here to help you, and your midwife will discuss the screening options with you.

Midwives follow up clinic

This clinic takes place every Monday, Tuesday and Thursday from 9am – 12pm and 1.40pm – 4pm.

It is for women and pregnant people who live out of the borough. You will be seen in this clinic for your follow-up appointments and antenatal care.

Extra support for you

Pregnancy can be a vulnerable time and we recognise that there are some people who may require additional support because of this. This could be due to a number of reasons, for example, being a young parent, mental health difficulties, domestic abuse or other social circumstances. We have a team of specialist midwives who are able to provide enhanced maternity care and support.

We encourage you to let your midwife know if you feel that you would benefit from this type of care. You will then receive the right support at the right time. 

Our specialist clinics

Each pregnancy is different, our specialist services are there to support you from pregnancy through to birth.

Pre-conception counselling

We offer pre-pregnancy counselling for people with medical conditions who are planning a pregnancy in north-east London. We offer advice on medication in pregnancy, and formulate an individualised management plan for care in pregnancy as well as during labour and delivery.  

This service is available for all women and pregnant people with medical conditions who are planning pregnancy or considering fertility treatment. We can also provide counselling for those with a previous complicated pregnancy due to a medical condition who may wish to discuss preparation for a future pregnancy.

For those who do not wish to conceive, advice on safe and effective contraception can be provided.  

Contact us by speaking to your GP or emailing us.

Care for women with diabetes in pregnancy

Our diabetes service specialises in the management of diabetes in pregnancy, where we see women who have Type 1, Type 2 or gestational diabetes.  The clinic is run by a multidisciplinary team (MDT) which includes obstetric doctors, diabetes doctors, diabetes midwives and a dietician who support women to control their blood sugar levels during pregnancy.

The maternity dietitian

Our maternity dietitian will help you to plan and manage your diet during pregnancy.

The maternity dietitian sees women and pregnant people with a variety of conditions including diabetes, under or overweight, poor weight gain or appetite, food allergies, extreme sickness (hyperemesis), medical (metabolic) conditions or digestion conditions.  If you have any of these conditions, you will be referred for an appointment.

Obstetric medicine

If you have a known medical condition or a medical problem has been identified during your pregnancy, you will be seen in a specialist obstetric medicine clinic. These are special clinics that are jointly run with a consultant obstetrician and consultant medical doctor. They may include:

  • Renal clinic: for women who have had kidney transplants in the past or have known kidney problems. You may also be seen here if you have developed a kidney problem during your pregnancy.
  • Hypertension clinic: if you suffer with high blood pressure, either before or since becoming pregnant, you may be asked to attend this clinic.
  • Maternal cardiac clinic: for women with known heart problems or have developed a heart problem during pregnancy.
  • Neurology clinic: for women who have neurological problems including Epilepsy, migraines and spine/brain problems.

In all of these clinics you will have a joint review by an obstetrician and specialist renal or cardiac or neurology consultant, where a plan of treatment and care will be agreed for your pregnancy, delivery and postnatal period.

Fetal medicine unit

In most pregnancies, there will be no complications. However sometimes you and your unborn baby need extra care.

Our fetal medicine team is a specialised department that offers women, pregnant people and their families support through pregnancy and antenatal screening when a congenital or genetic condition might be suspected or diagnosed. The team also provides specialist scans and support for people with complex pregnancies such as with twins or triplet pregnancies.

We can support you by offering the following:

  • advice and/or counselling to help decision making
  • working closely with our clinical genetics team to ensure that you and your partner receive all the information you require to help make a decision
  • helping you through diagnostic procedures such as amniocentesis or chorionic villus sampling which can be performed to make a genetic diagnosis
  • provide other resources of advice and support
  • making referrals to other hospitals that specialise in specific conditions for further assessment

Urgent cases are seen within 72 hours from the time of referral.

Fetal echocardiography clinic

Our combined fetal echocardiography clinic is for women and pregnant people with congenital heart conditions, a family history of congenital heart conditions or where the baby is found to have a heart condition. This is a detailed scan of the heart which can only be performed at specialist centres.

Maternal fetal assessment unit

The maternal fetal assessment unit (MFAU) is a clinic for pregnant women and people seen by appointment from 17 weeks of pregnancy. You may been seen here if you have a pregnancy concern that needs monitoring, such as high blood pressure and low iron levels. The clinic is run by midwives and is open Monday to Friday, from 9am to 5pm on the 8th floor next to the antenatal clinic.

If you need to see a consultant in MFAU, you will be given an appointment for either Monday (11am – 1pm) or Thursday (2pm – 5pm).

Breech clinic

If at 35-36 weeks into your pregnancy, your baby is not facing with its head down in the pelvis, you will be referred to this specialist breech clinic.

You will see a consultant and discuss options which may include trying to turn the baby around (named external cephalic version; ECV), having a vaginal breech delivery or undergoing a caesarean section. You will be supported throughout with whatever decision you make.

The anti D clinic for rhesus negative women and pregnant people

If your blood type is rhesus negative and your baby's other biological parent is rhesus positive, you may be pregnant with a rhesus positive baby. If any of your baby’s blood enters your bloodstream, your immune system can develop antibodies against the rhesus antigens. This is known as sensitisation and you will need to have blood tests in pregnancy and may need an injection.

The blood test clinic runs every Tuesday from 9.20am – 3.20pm.

The anti D injection clinic (usually at 28 weeks of pregnancy) runs every Wednesday from 9.20am – 3.20pm.

Virology clinic

Women and pregnant people will receive their screening results within 10 days from being tested. A referral is then made to a virology specialist for the pregnant person to receive treatment. 

Pregnant women and people who receive positive results for Hepatitis B and Syphilis may be seen at this clinic.

Additional resources and information

Your birth

Your health

  • Stopping smoking will help both you and your baby immediately. Speak to us if you would like support to stop smoking.
  • Gestational diabetes is high blood sugar (glucose) that develops during pregnancy and usually disappears after giving birth.

Your pregnancy

Your baby

Safe sleep and baby carriers

Other support resources