The parents of a newborn who died 27 minutes after birth say they have got justice for him – despite the hospital trust responsible trying to claim he was in fact stillborn. Rachel Higgs and Andrew Batten, from Broadstairs in Kent, attended the conclusion of the inquest into son Archie’s death.
They are being represented by Fairweather Solicitors, which is acting for 18 families who have suffered stillbirths, neonatal deaths or other injuries at the Queen Elizabeth Queen Mother Hospital (QEQM) in Margate or other hospitals operated by the trust. They also represented the family of Harry Richford, whose death in 2017 following his birth at the QEQM led to East Kent Hospitals being fined £733,000 for its failures.
Following the conclusion of the inquest, Ms Higgs and Mr Batten shared a statement through their solicitors: “Listening to all the evidence in the case has been hard. It seems incredible to us that so many basic mistakes were made by so many people on the day of Archie’s birth and death.
