Mothers and babies suffering, staff at breaking point, huge disparities in standards of care - we've all seen the headlines about the crisis in NHS maternity care, but it seems they just keep coming.

Have you ever thought there's more to it all than meets the eye?

For more than two decades, the NHS maternity service has been the focus of repeated scandals. Time and time again, independent investigations have exposed failures, made recommendations and promised change. Yet things don't improve.

In this powerful, revealing account, Lorin Lakasing draws on her 30-year experience of clinical practice in maternity to give an insider's view of the current worrying situation and its development. She reveals the reasons why major stakeholders in this vital service have inadvertently been encouraged to pursue different agendas, and how that has made effective, collaborative working towards optimal clinical outcomes almost impossible.

A safe and effective NHS maternity service is in everyone's best interests. But for this to happen, real change is needed now. This book is an informed, fresh and hopeful perspective on how we can make maternity care better for all.