The mum of a boy who was left profoundly disabled after his birth at the scandal hit Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital NHS Trust has spoken out after a judge finally confirmed his care will be paid for life.
Widowed Charlotte Cheshire has been fighting for Adam, who is now 11-years-old, since he was born at Shrewsbury Hospital.
In the hours after her son's birth his health deteriorated. He showed signs of early-onset Group B Strep infection - a bacterial infection that can lead to meningitis.
Maternity staff classed Adam's condition as 'normal' despite him not feeding adequately since birth.
He wasn't diagnosed with GBS and meningitis until the following day, and spent almost a month in neonatal intensive care.
His case was one of many that were part of the Ockenden report published in March 2022.
Today, Adam has brain damage, hearing and visual impairments, autism, severe learning difficulties, and behavioural problems.
He will likely rely on others to care for him for the rest of his life, and will be unable to work or live independently.
His mum, and late father Chris who died from cancer in 2020, had been fighting to secure funding for Adam's care which will be lifelong.
Last Monday at the High Court the liability settlement was agreed by Mrs Justice Thornton and an interim payment was agreed.
Speaking to the Mirror, Charlotte who is a Church of England priest, said: "It's been a long time coming.
"I have been fighting for years and I now know that Adam is going to be cared for, for the rest of his life."
Charlotte, 44, from Newport, Shropshire says Adam can get frustrated and at 11 he is already 13 stone and 5ft 6in, so she knows going forward she is going to need help from specialists who can help care and control him.
She said: "I love Adam with all my heart, but he still needs cleaning and looking after, I have a boy with the developmental age of a toddler who needs 24-hour care but is going to grow up like his father and will likely be 6ft 6."
Speaking of the moment in the High Court when the ruling was made, Charlotte said sitting in the old court building was intimidating, but she was relieved when the judge confirmed the settlement the trust, and the family's solicitors, had come to.
She said: "After she made her ruling to say the trust accepts 80% of Adam's injuries, she paid tribute to me.
"She said I was a dedicated mother and tireless campaigner, and she commented on how hard it must have been on my own after my husband's death.
"My husband has been dead three years, I'm used to his absence, but at that moment he should have been there to see it.
"He was very much the person who supported me and got on the floor to play with Adam, he should have been there."
Charlotte added: "This isn't a lottery win, for me my personal finances don't change. This doesn't impact my personal quality of life or my day to day. But if Adam need care I can now get it for him."
Her solicitor, Irwin Mitchell’s specialist Court of Protection team, will now manage Adam's fund.
Charlotte is now calling on pregnant women to be routinely tested for Group B Strep on the NHS.
The UK does not routinely test pregnant women unlike most wealthy countries such as the USA, Canada and much of Europe.
Yet if the test was carried out routinely as part of the maternity care women receive, it would cost the NHS just £11.
One baby a week in the UK dies from Group B Strep usually within hours of being born, while 75 babies each year with the infection survive birth but are left with a disability - like Adam.
She added: "At no point in my pregnancy or in the hours after Adam was born was I told about Group B Strep.
"I later found out following a review of my records, that early in my pregnancy it was decided that I wouldn’t have a test for GBS because I didn’t have the risk factors associated with it.
"It was very hard to learn that this had been considered but not discussed with me considering the eventual outcome."
Sara Burns, the expert medical negligence lawyer at Irwin Mitchell, representing Charlotte said: "While the maternity failings which were allowed to manifest at Shrewsbury and Telford over many years are well documented, their shocking nature never diminishes.
"Behind each case is a human tragedy of how families have been left devastated by medical errors.
"Many of these were avoidable and have led to the deaths of babies or incredibly serious birth injuries, which have caused severe disabilities and people and needing a lifetime of specialist care.
"We believe that Adam’s care was typical of many issues families have raised. Serial observations were missed, signs that should have been acted upon weren’t and serious illnesses were diagnosed too late.
"While nothing can ever make up for what happened to Adam, we’re pleased to have secured this liability settlement which has been approved by the High Court – which means Adam will receive the lifetime care and support he requires because of his complex needs.
"Sadly, what happened at Shrewsbury and Telford doesn’t seem to be an isolated incident. We continue to receive many first-hand accounts from families across the UK affected by issues in maternity care.
She adds: "Although GBS can make babies very unwell, most will recover with prompt treatment.
"A simple test can be conducted to highlight whether an expectant mum is a carrier of group B Strep and her care plan can be adjusted to ensure intravenous antibiotics are provided throughout labour to prevent the infection being transmitted."
Charity Group B Strep Support's chief executive Jane Plumb added: "It's devastating Adam did not get the care he needed at the time and that the severe disabilities he now lives with as a result of group B Strep meningitis could have and should have been prevented.
"The UK falls behind so many countries by not offering GBS testing to pregnant women and people and too often not even telling them about GBS.
"This needs to change. Families deserve better."
