Just found out you are pregnant?

Welcome to Harrogate Maternity Services. Please read all the following information before registering your pregnancy. The link to register can be found at the bottom of this page.

Have you found out you are pregnant?

If you are pregnant and considering booking at Harrogate District Hospital please get in touch as soon as possible so that we can start planning your care together. The link for referring your pregnancy to Harrogate is at the bottom of this page.

This referral should take no longer than 10 minutes to complete. Before completing the form, it is important that you read the below information about screening tests to help you make informed decisions. You may also complete this from at any stage in pregnancy if you wish to transfer your care to Harrogate from another maternity care provider. You can also complete this form to refer a pregnancy on behalf of a pregnant person.

Booking your pregnancy as soon as you find out you are pregnant helps plan your care together. If you wish to transfer your care to Harrogate hospital at any time in your pregnancy, please fill in this form so we can get back to you as soon as possible.

Our aim is to make sure you have access to the right care from day one. Harrogate will triage your referral based on the information you provide, and the hospital will contact you in the next few weeks to start your antenatal care. In the meantime, if you are worried about your pregnancy, please tell your GP straight away. If you are 14+ weeks you may contact Maternity Assessment Centre (MAC) to be seen in our maternity triage for any urgent concerns

Single Point of Contact Maternity Services: 01423 557531.

Self-refer to our maternity services

We take online referrals through our external link

If you are 10+ weeks pregnant, please complete your referral and then call Antenatal clinic (Monday- Friday 9-5pm) on the single point of contact number below.

If you have any difficulties in opening or completing this form or have not heard from us after 2 weeks please contact our Single Point of Access Number  01423 557531, and choose option 2  (Monday- Friday 9am-5pm).

If you have concerns about accessing badger notes, please contact a midwife or access the badger notes help page for more support https://www.badgernotes.net/Help

Learn more about Badger Notes and our Digital Records at Badgernet and Harrogate and District NHS Foundation Trust Maternity  

You can find lots of additional information on our maternity website. Resources are also available in different languages by using the drop box ‘Google Translate’ function at the top of the page,

Folic Acid: Some people need to take an increased dose of folic acid in the first 12 weeks for pregnancy to reduce the risk of neural tube defects such as spina bifida, please read the information here. If you feel you meet the criteria to take an increased 5mg folic acid dose please contact your GP surgery, inform them you are pregnant and that you meet the criteria for an increased folic acid dose and ask for a prescription.

Mental health: Health professionals are encouraged to ask questions around your mental health at every contact. We base our questions off the Whooley Questions. We would advise self-answering these questions during your pregnancy but in particular at booking, 25-28weeks pregnant, 31-34 weeks and post birth day 10-14.

In the past month – have you felt down, depressed or hopeless? (Yes, No or Unknown)

In the past month – Have you had little interest or pleasure in doing things? (Yes, No or unsure)

If you answer yes to either of these questions, we advise addressing this within your pregnancy referral under the section ‘Do you have past, recent or ongoing mental health concerns?’

Please consider completing The Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS) if you answer yes to either of the Whooley Questions above. This will help provide information to your midwife to help support you further during your pregnancy. If you are concerned about your wellbeing and safety always call 111 or 999. There are also resources on the NHS website.

If you are struggling with your mental health and you need more support always reach out to your GP or complete a self-assessment through North Yorkshire Talking Therapies.

Ask a Midwife Service: For any non-urgent concerns please reach out to the Ask A Midwife service on Facebook and Instagram or via the Ask a Midwife website page.

We strongly advise that you to read information about screening tests that will be offered to you in early pregnancy to help you make informed decisions.

A booking appointment is your first point of contact with the midwife. This appointment usually lasts for an hour. We aim to ensure this appointment takes place before you are 10 weeks pregnant to allow for enough time to organise any screening tests you may wish to have. Please be aware, this appointment does NOT include an ultrasound scan. The midwife will request your first ultrasound scan after you have booked with us; and you should receive notice of your scan appointment when you are around 12 weeks pregnant. More information on what to expect at your booking appointment

Our booking appointments

Please note, our bookings appointments are held at Harrogate District Hospital HG2 7SX and Ripon Community Hospital HG4 2PR to facilitate more appointments. If you live in Harrogate or Knaresborough, but have been booked an appointment in Ripon, you will not be expected to travel to Ripon throughout the duration of your pregnancy. Your future maternity appointments will be held in your local GP, Mowbray Square Medical Centre in Harrogate, HG1 5AR or Harrogate Hospital HG2 7SX (Ultrasound scans. Maternity Assessment Centre or Antenatal Day Unit).

You will have been assigned the earliest available appointment for your current gestation. Due to the high number of referrals we receive, we would appreciate if you were able to adhere to the appointment slot given. However, we recognise this is not always possible. The below information will help you to understand more about how our appointments work.