About the NCMD
“It is vital to share learning about the changing risks to children’s safety and wellbeing” Katrina Phillips, Child Accident Prevention Trust (CAPT)
The National Child Mortality Database (NCMD) national data collection and analysis system is the first of its kind anywhere in the world. It records comprehensive data, standardised across a whole country (England), on the circumstances of children’s deaths. The purpose of collating information nationally is to ensure that deaths are learned from, that learning is widely shared and that actions are taken, locally and nationally, to reduce the number of children who die.
The programme was established and is delivered by the University of Bristol, in collaboration with Anna Freud, UCLPartners and the software company QES. It also includes representation from bereaved families through the NCMD charity partners: Child Bereavement UK, The Lullaby Trust and Sands. The programme is funded by NHS England and commissioned by HQIP.
Aims
The aims of the project are to:
- Capture, analyse and disseminate appropriate data and learning from child death reviews
- Drive the quality of child death review at every stage through bench-marking and quality improvement (QI) methodology
- Study and analyse the patterns, causes and associated risk factors of child mortality in England, providing information to target preventative health and
social care and to assist in policy decisions, and - Develop a sustainable model after the lifetime of the project.
Impact
Learning from the past to change and improve the future is the very reason that NCMD exists. We thank all professionals who contribute to child death reviews for enabling us to do just that. You can find details of our achievements in our impact reports.
Our partners
University of Bristol
Lead partner
Bristol Medical School at the University of Bristol is a leading centre for collaborative and multi-disciplinary research in population and translational health sciences.
QES
Software developer
QES is a specialist developer of web based and offline apps, supporting secure digital data solutions for a diverse range of public and private sector clients.
UCLPartners
Quality improvement
UCLPartners is a partnership of world-leading academic and clinical research centres, NHS organisations, industry, patients and others committed to harnessing research to deliver excellent patient care.
Anna Freud
Quality improvement
Anna Freud is a world-leading mental health charity for children and families with a mission to close the gap in wellbeing and mental health by advancing, translating, delivering and sharing the best science and practice.
Sands
Charity partner
Sands works to support anyone affected by the death of a baby; improve the care bereaved parents receive; and create a world where fewer babies die.
Child Bereavement UK
Charity partner
Child Bereavement UK supports families and educates professionals when a baby or child of any age dies or is dying, or when a child is facing bereavement.
The Lullaby Trust
Charity partner
The Lullaby Trust raises awareness of sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS), provides expert advice on safer sleep for babies and offers emotional support for bereaved families.
The NPEU
Research centre
The National Perinatal Epidemiology Unit (NPEU) is a multidisciplinary research unit run by the University of Oxford. They deliver a range of projects to monitor and improve maternal and child health.