Current Guidelines
National Institute of Clinical Excellence (NICE) Guidelines
The following guidelines and quality standards issued by NICE relate to ante-natal, intrapartum and postnatal care:
NG126 -Ectopic pregnancy and miscarriage: diagnosis and initial management (updated August 2023)
Guidance on Valproate in women and girls of childbearing years (updated March 2019)
QS22 – Quality standard for antenatal care (updated April 2023)
NG195 –Neonatal infection:antibiotics for prevention and treatment (updated March 2024)
NG201 – Antenatal care: (issues August 2011)
- 1.1 Organisation and delivery of antenatal care
- 1.2 Routine antenatal clinical care
- 1.3 Information and support for pregnant women and their partners
- 1.4 Interventions for common problems during pregnancy
CG156 – Routine antenatal anti-D prophylaxis for women who are rhesus D negative (Issued August 2008)
NG235 – Intrapartum Care (issued September 2023)
QS109 – Diabetes in Pregnancy (Updated January 2023)
NG4 – Safe Midwifery Staffing for Maternity Settings (Issued: February 2015)
QS98 – Improving Maternal and Child Nutrition (Issued: July 2015)
QS105 Intrapartum Care (updated February 2017)
NG25 – Preterm Labour and Birth (updated June 2022)
QS115 – Antenatal and Postnatal Mental Health (Issued: February 2016)
DG49 – PLGF-based testing to help diagnose suspected pre-eclampsia (Issued: July 2022)
Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (RCOG) Guidelines
Information for you leaflets:
RCOG Green-top guidelines:
- Small-for-Gestational-Age Fetus, Investigation and Management (No. 31) March 2013 – Reviewed May 2024
- Care of Women Presenting with Suspected Preterm Prelabour Rupture of Membranes from 24+0 Weeks of Gestation (No. 73) June 2019
- Gestational Trophoblastic Disease (No. 38) September 2019– Reviewed September 2022
- Non-invasive Prenatal Testing (No. 74) October 2019 – Reviewed June 2025
- Maternal Collapse in Pregnancy and the Puerperium (No. 56) – Reviewed December 2024
- Assisted Vaginal Birth (No. 26) April 2020
- Care of Women with Obesity in Pregnancy (No. 72) November 2018
- Antepartum Haemorrhage (No. 63) December 2011
- Reduced Fetal Movements (No. 57) February 2011
- Birth after Previous Caesarean Birth (No. 45) October 2015
- External Cephalic Version and Reducing the Incidence of Term Breech Presentation (No. 20a) March 2017
- Management of Breech Presentation (Green-top Guideline No. 20b) March 2017
- Group B Streptococcal Disease, Early-onset (Green-top Guideline No. 36) September 2017
- Obstetric Cholestasis (No. 43) August 2022
- Monochorionic Twin Pregnancy, Management (No. 51) – Reviewed February 2024
- Diagnosis and Management of Ectopic Pregnancy (No. 21) November 2016
- Placenta Praevia and Placenta Accreta: Diagnosis and Management (No. 27a) September 2018
- Placenta Praevia Diagnosis and Management (No. 27b) September 2018
- Postpartum Haemorrhage, Prevention and Management (No. 52) December 2016
- Management of Bladder Pain Syndrome (No. 70) December 2016
- Shoulder Dystocia (No. 42) March 2012
- Umbilical Cord Prolapse (No. 50) November 2014
- Rhesus D Prophylaxis, The Use of Anti-D Immunoglobulin for (No. 22) April 2011 – replaced by – British Committee for Standards in Haematology (BCSH) guideline on anti-D administration in pregnancy.
- Guidelines for management of sickle cell disease in pregnancy 2021 – Replacement for (No.61)
- Care of Late Intrauterine Fetal Death and Stillbirth ( No. 55) – Reviewed October 2024
- The Management of Women with Red Cell Antibodies during Pregnancy (N0.65) May 2014
- Thalassaemia in Pregnancy, Management of Beta (No. 66) March 2014
- International Evidence-based Guideline for the assessment and management of polycystic ovary syndrome 2023 – replacement for (No.33)
- Thrombosis and Embolism during Pregnancy and the Puerperium, Reducing the Risk (No. 37a) April 2015
- Thrombosis and Embolism during Pregnancy and the Puerperium: Acute Management (No. 37b) April 2015
- Third- and Fourth-degree Perineal Tears, Management (No. 29) June 2015
- Female Genital Mutilation and its Management (No. 53) July 2015
- The Management of Nausea and Vomiting of Pregnancy and Hyperemesis Gravidarum (No.69) June 2016
- Epilepsy in Pregnancy (No. 68) June 2016
- Chronic Pelvic Pain, Initial Management (No. 41) May 2012
- Identification and management of maternal sepsis during and following pregnancy (No. 64) – December 2024
- Recurrent Miscarriage, Investigation and Treatment of Couples (No. 17) – Reviewed May 2023
More guidelines can be accessed via the RCOG website
NHS England
- Saving Babies’ Lives – Version 3 – A care bundle for reducing perinatal mortality.
-
Saving Babies Lives; A Care Bundle To Reduce Stillbirth, March 2016
Royal College of General Practitioners, Association of British Neurologists and Royal College of Physicians
World Health Organization
- Interventions to improve preterm birth outcomes, November 2015
- November 2022 Updates:
The Lullaby Trust
- Safer Sleep; Saving Babies Lives – Revised November 2024
Royal College of Nursing
Last revised: November 2025