Midwifery

Welcome to the midwifery course page for new students. The midwifery programme runs within the School of Health Sciences, based at the Kate Granger Building.

You will find useful information regarding the course on this page and details of who to contact and how, should you have any questions regarding the course.

Course information

BSc (Hons) Midwifery is a three-year degree course, with 50% theory and 50% practice.

We provide clinical placements in 9 different hospitals across Kent, Hampshire, Surrey, Sussex and Berkshire.

There are three modules, one each year. Theoretical teaching delivery consists of a variety of classroom lectures, seminars, workshops, simulation, online resources, and self-directed learning. You can find further information on each of the modules and course information in the course handbook

Top tips

Get yourself a good year planner (that is a week-to-page). This course requires a lot of planning ahead and good time management skills.

Join a society/sports team. Alongside MidSoc (Our student midwives society), we recommend that you join another society or sports club to meet other students outside of Health Sciences. We’ve found this helps students establish a deeper sense of belonging within the student community and enriches the student experience.

Pre reading materials. Although we do not expect you to buy any books to be able to undertake this course, there are some that the Library do not hold which are really useful, such as the PROMPT manual (2018, 3rd edition). Understanding your professional code is vital and we’ve included a link to this below in the ‘recommended reading’ section.

The Royal College of Midwives (RCM) are one of many health care unions, but is the only one run by midwives, for midwives. They have lots of e-training available which can complete any registrant/aspiring registrant’s knowledge. So, you may also wish to consider joining the RCM as a student member, which is heavily discounted and included lots of benefits.

What a typical week looks like in Year 1

Once you’ve completed induction week, you’ll be starting your year one taught curriculum. Week one will include showing you around Surreylearn, our virtual learning environment (VLE).

Between the start of the year and the winter break, you will be undertaking theory only and will be in university-taught sessions for two days per week. Each day will run from approximately 9am to 4:30pm. In the School of Health Sciences at Surrey, we utilise a ‘prepare’, ‘discover’, ‘review’ approach to learning. Prior to your first session of the week, you will access the ‘prepare’ work on the VLE and undertake necessary pre-reading and activities to prepare you for the in-class ‘discover’ session.

One of the two days taught in university will be shared learning. Shared learning is in smaller groups of multidisciplinary students (Midwives, Nurses (all fields) and Paramedics). In the NHS, no professionals work in silos as we are all part of one wider team. This is important in ensuring safe, effective, and seamless care to optimise patient experience and wellbeing. We believe that it is vitally important to start your professional careers in the manner you will practice. Shared learning groups are not only taught to MDT groups, but by MDT groups, and you are likely to have tutors from all the disciplines facilitating these sessions.

In the shared learning ‘discover’ sessions, you will learn the fundamentals of health care practice, from communication to basic assessment skills, your professional codes of practice, anatomy, and physiology and much more. For the majority of the shared learning days, you will split your time between classroom seminars and the sim suite where you will explore and learn a wide range of communication and clinical skills with the help of our professional sim actors, expert simulation technicians and tutors, in our cutting-edge simulation centre.

After you have completed your day of shared learning, you will review your VLE to access the ‘review’ work – post-session learning and to prepare for your second day of the week at university by completing your ‘prepare’ work for your second, midwifery-specific, day at university.

Your midwifery-specific taught days will explore a case study, ‘Jane’. You will follow Jane and her pregnancy from preconception to the point of discharge to the Health Visitor, week by week. Some weeks will be based solely in the classroom and others will be a mixture of simulation and taught seminars.

Following your midwifery-specific day, you will revisit the VLE again, and complete any ‘review’ work for that session and start on the ‘prepare’ work for the following week. It is expected as an adult learner, that you spend an equal amount of time completing self-directed learning to the number of hours you spend in university-taught learning.

On the days between university-taught sessions, you may find yourself revising, reviewing, or preparing in the Hive. Or you may take the opportunity to visit the Library and get to know the Academic Skills and Development team there, who can offer a wide range of group and 1-2-1 sessions to support students with study skills and academic writing.

There is so much to do across the two campuses, so make sure you take a little time each week to enjoy being a student at university and practicing self-care.

Our midwifery lecturers

Rebecca Greenacre – Lead Midwife for Education (LME) and Director of Studies (DoS) for Midwifery

Becky is the Lead Midwife for Education and Programme Director for Midwifery her at the University of Surrey. The Lead Midwife for Education role is a statutory role required by the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC).

One of Becky’s many roles is to ensure that the public are safeguarded and that all student midwives are fit to enter the professional register by the end of the programme, being of ‘good health and character’ and following successful completion of all elements of the course. This is achieved by ensuring you are educated according to the relevant standards and practice placements are suitable learning environments.

Becky completed her BSc (Hons) Midwifery at the European Institute of Health and Medical Sciences (EIHMS) at the University of Surrey in 2002 after which she worked as a midwife at the Royal Surrey County Hospital in roles which included audit, clinical governance, and delivery suite coordinator. In 2012, Becky completed an MSc in Advanced Practice Women's Health at King's College London and in 2017, completed a Postgraduate Certificate of Education for Professional Practice at the University of Surrey.

Becky’s special areas of interest include complex and critical care in midwifery, fetal monitoring, anatomy, physiology and pathophysiology and preparation for autonomous practice.

Vikki Saravia – Midwifery Lecturer, Midwifery Field Lead, BFI Lead

Vikki is a lecturer in Midwifery, the Midwifery field lead, BFI lead. Some of her roles include being an academic integrity officer, an external examiner, and lead for the PLP and eMORA eportfolios.

Vikki qualified as a Midwife in 2003 and completed her BSc (Hons) Midwifery at The Wolfson Institute of Health Sciences, at Thames Valley University. In 2017 Vikki completed her Postgraduate Certificate in Education for Professional Practice at the University of Surrey.

Vikki has been a Midwife for over 20 years and has spent this time working in a diverse variety of roles in a large acute NHS hospital. Vikki has a clinical background as a labour ward co-ordinator, with experience in practice development, risk, audit, case loading midwifery and midwifery practice in both stand-alone and integrated birth centres.

Vikki has been teaching at the University of Surrey since 2016 and her special interests lie within perinatal mental health, human factors and Midwifery practice for those clients requiring additional and emergency care. Vikki is a practice link tutor for Basingstoke and Wexham Park Hospitals.

Sam Harrison – Midwifery Lecturer, Year 2 Module Lead, Deputy BFI Lead

Sam has been a midwife since 2001. Since qualification Sam has worked in many roles both clinically in practice development and in Maternity Quality and Safety (Risk). Sam has coordinated a labour ward and an alongside midwifery led unit so understands both universal and high-risk care. Sam still works clinically completing shifts as a NIPE (Newborn Infant Physical Examination) midwife.

Since joining the university in January 2022, Sam has completed the mental health first aid course and is Year 2 lead. Sam has an interest in NIPE, team working and providing inclusive care to all service users. Sam is a practice link tutor for Wexham Park Hospitals.

Dr Ann Robinson – Senior Midwifery Lecturer

Ann is a Senior Lecturer in Midwifery and Sexual Health having long been passionate about women-centred healthcare across the childbearing continuum.

After qualifying as a Registered Nurse in London, she went to Cornwall to train as a midwife, before returning to London to specialise in women’s health, intrapartum care and fetal assessment.

Ann completed a PhD at Southampton University in 2012. Her thesis focused on The Role of The Consultant Midwife: An exploration of the expectations, experiences, and intricacies.

Now part time, Ann divides her week between student assessment, research supervision and teaching.

Susan Meadows – Midwifery Lecturer, Deputy Lead Year 2 Module

Susan is a Midwifery Lecturer and one of the deputy leads for year 2 Midwifery module. Susan completed her Bachelor of Science Degree in Midwifery Studies in 2002 here, at University of Surrey and has now come full circle all these years later returning to the University as part of the teaching team in September 2022.

Prior to this Susan was in clinical practice for 20 years mainly providing intrapartum care. Susan’s passions are midwifery-led care and supporting women to have a positive birth experience.

Suzie Thorpe – Midwifery Lecturer, Year 1 Module Lead, Cohort Lead (Sept 2024)

Suzie is one of the Midwifery lecturers, and the lead for the year 1 module. Suzie has previously worked at the Royal Surrey as a Practice Development (PD) Midwife, where her role within the PD team was to support student midwives in practice, as well as the wider maternity team. It was during that role, Suzie realised that she wanted to concentrate on the students and make a bigger impact on their journey into midwifery. Suzie’s career as a midwife has also included a position as a core postnatal midwife, and the setting up & running of ‘NIPE clinics’ (New-born Infant Physical Examinations).

Suzie has been fortunate enough to attend the University of Surrey as a student to complete, Adult Nursing (2003), Midwifery (2006), NIPE (2011) and more recently to complete the PGCE Education for Health Professionals in 2021. Suzie is really looking forward to supporting you and seeing you all qualify as midwives.

Claire Saxby – Midwifery Lecturer, Deputy Lead Year 1 Module

Claire has been working at the University of Surrey as a midwifery tutor for the last 15 months. Claire is the deputy lead for year 1 teaching and she is the link tutor for Ashford and St Peters Trust.

Claire was a Band 7 Labour Ward Co-ordinator at the Royal Surrey County Hospital before joining the team with a particular interest in maintaining holistic care for women with complexities. Whilst being a Co-ordinator Claire also worked as a fetal medicine and screening midwife which she found particularly interesting and rewarding.

Dr Sarah Bolger – Midwifery Lecturer, Cohort Lead (Sept 2022), Pedagogic Development Coordinator

Sarah qualified as an adult Nurse in 2000 and in 2004 qualified as a Midwife working in some of the busiest hospitals in London and the South of England.

Sarah is a Midwifery lecturer, Cohort lead for September 2022 cohort, and the Pedagogic Development Coordinator (PDC) looking at quality within teaching in the School of Health Sciences. Sarah also leads the Evidence Based Practice thread which helps undergraduate students engage with research and its link to clinical care.

Sian Dudgeon – Midwifery Lecturer, Deputy Lead Year 2 Module, Deputy Year 3 Module Lead

Sian Dudgeon is one of the deputy leads for Year 2 and 3 on the Midwifery programme. Sian obtained a diploma in adult nursing at Kings College in 1998 and subsequently worked in a Coronary Care Unit at East Surrey Hospital. In 2002 she completed a Bachelor of Science in Midwifery Studies. She has spent the last 20 years in Midwifery practice in varying roles. Prior to starting at the university in September 2022 Sian worked in senior management roles, with a particular passion for patient safety.

Jaime Sutherland – Midwifery Lecturer

Jaime is a Registered Adult Nurse (RN) and Registered Midwife (RM) but started her graduate working career as a Microbiologist at Thames Water. Jaime completed her MSc (Advanced Midwifery Practice) at the university of Surrey in 2012. Her MSc dissertation focused on a systematic review and meta-analysis of the effectiveness of antenatal and postnatal weight-management interventions in overweight and obese women.

Jaime has been working as a midwife for over 17 years, working in a busy maternity unit as a member of the practice development team, a clinical midwife practitioner, supervisor of midwives, mentor, and advanced assessor of the newborn, providing high-quality, evidenced-based, woman-centred antenatal, intrapartum and postnatal care to mothers and babies.

Jaime has been teaching at the university of Surrey since Nov 2014, and her special interests lie within obstetric emergencies, the use of simulation in midwifery, newborn infant physical exam (NIPE), quantitative research, and obesity in pregnancy.

Caroline Eynon – Midwifery Lecturer, Year 3 Module Lead

Caroline qualified as a midwife in 1991. Since qualification Caroline has worked overseas and in many roles both clinically in practice development. Caroline has worked in the community case loading and supporting women to birth their babies at home. She has also managed an antenatal ward and coordinated a labour ward and is experienced in both universal and additional care. Caroline is a certified Mindfulness Teacher and coach.

Since joining the university in July 2021, Caroline has completed the mental health first aid course and Student Minds Look After Your Mate course. Caroline has an interest in wellbeing, reflection, and evidence-based practice. to all service users. Caroline is a practice link tutor for the Royal Surrey Foundation Trust and the lead for the year 3 midwifery module.

Dr Alison Callwood - Senior Lecturer

Dr Alison Callwood gained her Doctor of Philosophy in 2015 at the University of Surrey. She has a background in midwifery, nursing practice and education spanning 30 years. Alison is actively engaged in post-doctoral research exploring admissions to health professions education programmes focusing on ensuring equity. She is a Fellow of the Institute of People-Centred AI, University of Surrey, the UK Medical Schools Council MMI Expert Group and Council of Deans for Health EDI Reference group.

Alison has been awarded multiple grants from Innovate UK the United Kingdom Innovation Agency including the 2023 Women in Innovation award. She is now founder of a ‘tech-4-good’ recruitment start-up company, Sammi-Select (https://www.sammi-select.co.uk/) having co-designed and built SAMMI®, the first known online Multiple Mini-Interview (MMI) platform with principles for fairness built-in.

Her recent work includes the GENIUS (Generating Neurodiverse Inclusive Selection) project exploring the impact AI can bring to recruitment/admissions and how the interface between technology and humans can be softened to facilitate equity, inclusivity, and diversity particularly for neurodiverse applicants.

https://www.linkedin.com/in/dr-alison-callwood-31991484