Most people will have a horror story about any hospital. Not sure if many will have 3 horror stories about the same hospital for 3 different pregnancies and 3 different reasons. My selection process advice would begin with crossing St George's off the list at the outset. It's fine when things go right, but then so is the back seat of a taxi in a lay-by with a policeman performing as midwife.

Kingston hospital is also an option - it's much smaller and more personal than the bigger hospitals, which is what I wanted and I managed to secure a private room afterwards. I had all my antenatal care at St Mary's in Roehampton - which was easy as well. 

I had my second child at home through St George's and their home birth team was amazing. I did have to go in to George's for scans and it was extremely busy. I was admitted to hospital after my home birth for monitoring and the postnatal ward was awfully noisy - I hadn't planned on going there so hadn't looked into whether there was a private room available or not. 

In short, it depends on what you are looking for. Care can vary and so can experience at every hospital, so I would decide on what's most important for you. How quickly you can get there is a major consideration - for antenatal care and for the actual birth - especially with all the traffic chaos these days thanks to the TFL cycle and bus lanes etc. 

Finding myself in a similar situation, it is also difficult for me to choose a hospital where the birth will take place. My husband and I were worried and did not know how to make the right choice. A friend of mine advised me to trust the advice of an insurance company. I decided to find out more about this at https://www.remedigap.com/medicare-insurance-companies/ and found information about the conditions under which insurance is valid during childbirth and during hospitalization. I also want to be sure that in the event of any threat, my health is fully protected by the insurance company.

Being a birth doula I do get to see a lot of hospitals in SW London. I have to say, that the best birth centre I have seen is at Chelsea and Westminster. It is very new, and high tech (which is all hidden behind cupboards) with pools, and even a double bed that pulls out from the wall. They are very pro choice and the midwives are amazing.

I have also worked at St Thomas, St Georges, plus some private hospitals too. They are all excellent hospitals. It very much depends on how busy they are on the day, and which midwife you get. I have only come across one midwife who was really hostile, but otherwise, they have all been amazing. We are extremely lucky to live in an area where we can choose any of these hospitals.

I had both of my children at Chelsea and Westminster (quite some time ago now).

I chose St Thomas' which was clean and well organised. The service I receive from my GP, both before and after my birth was even better. If you are looking for an excellent ante natal and post natal service with Mid wives on site and you can get registered, I would highly recommend Dr Curran & Partners on Clapham Manor Street. The GPs and nurses are wonderful.

I chose St Thomas' which was clean and well organised. The service I receive from my GP, both before and after my birth was even better. If you are looking for an excellent ante natal and post natal service with Mid wives on site and you can get registered, I would highly recommend Dr Curran & Partners on Clapham Manor Street.

Had 2 at C&W and thought they were fab both times.... for a state run hospital I was in for a week post birth with my first and for 3 weeks pre-birth with my second prior and I still like the place! Staff were fabulous i thought and i was so thankful for just being in a light, airy building with good local restaurants (husband would bring in takeaway from down the road if i wasn't allowed out)!

I second the vote to get a doula however, I think it is really worth it to have someone present at the birth who you trust and understands you and your wishes and has done it all loads of times. I felt much more comfortable having her present and ours also worked at C&W so knew the staff there and how the hospital worked.

Good luck!

Everyone will have/know a 'horror' story about any hospital. I would reiterate that it's a good idea to choose somewhere that you can get to easily/quickly, particularly if you're worried for any reason, you're not in active labour (!) and get sent home again, or your birth partner etc. is not around initially when you need to go in.

I can't speak for anyone else but staff in the Carmen suite at St George's (if that's an option) were lovely and even visited after the birth, despite having to be transferred to the delivery suite. As already stated you can always change if you change your mind later on!

Apologies for possibly providing unwanted/asked for information, but please also consider paying for a Group B Strep test later on in your pregnancy, it's not expensive and it's entirely preventable and easy to protect your baby with antibiotics in labour if necessary - http://www.gbss.org.uk has more information.

Good luck whatever you decide!

Another thing my GP pointed out was finding for hospitals. He was going to refer me to st Thomas' and I said I thought St. George's was nearer and had the better birth. Centre etc but he implied Thomas' was better as they would never have their funding cut being a training hospital. I went away looked at distance, online ratings also which made it an easy choice for me. I had a v quick birth in assessment area at St thomas' and the staff could not have been better.
I have also read a lot of people advocating home births as you get you very own midwife dedicated to you and not darting between people. Just another thought in case was a viable option for you too.
Good luck!

I have been very happy with St Thomas for my 3 births and all were very different. (nhs and natural birth each time)
For me the choice was the access from work or from home and then I was really pleased with the facilities so I didn't look further.
Good luck!

This is so difficult. Honestly, it is worth having a good read about the facilities at each, what drugs they offer (each hospital is slightly different - and even if you plan a completely natural birth with no drugs it is worth bearing in mind just in case...), and consider what is most convenient for you, both in terms of delivery itself but also for routine appointments. We are equidistant between St George's and C&W and went for C&W as appointments were much easier to schedule around work for us. I was really really happy with my choice, the midwives were incredible for me and I got lots of post-birth support for feeding issues etc. But for every positive experience you will hear a negative one, for all hospitals as far as I can work out!! So you need to go with your instinct. I think both hospitals offer tours but possibly only when you are booked in? As others have said though if you make a choice you find you are unhappy with you can always request a change. Good luck!!

I've had 2 pretty good experiences of giving birth at St George's.

But as other posts have already said, you will find people who have had good and bad experiences at all hospitals.

I'd therefore also advocate considering the convenience of getting to/from your hospital; not just for your appointments but also for when you are in labour - not a fun journey so not one you want to make any longer or harder than possible. Good luck!

Plus make sure you (and your partner) know how to get to the hospital (with an alternative route eg for rush hour) plus where to park in advance once you've chosen your hospital!

St Thomas's used to do tours of the maternity unit - might be worth checking if they still do and if the other hospitals do to. Then you can decide which one you like the look of. To be honest though I agree with the others - it's just down to the luck of the draw which midwife you get. My suggestion would be to get a birth doula who will accompany you to hospital and will act as your advocate, as well as support you through the process. Compared to a private midwife they're very good value. They're not medically qualified but have been to enough births to understand the process and can explain what's going on.

headshrinker wrote:Just out of interest, Louve05, what is it that you don't like about St George's? It's a large, well-respected hospital with a great rep for neonatal care. All the replies here are good. Just wondering what is putting you off?

I have been referred to St George's a few times by my GP and didn't have great experiences, the consultants seemed good but the visits were rushed as the hospital was overcrowded and in one occasion I didn't feel the doctor read my file or listened to anything I said. Haven't got any experiences with their maternity service though, so I'll see if I can visit it before choosing a hospital.

Thank you so much to all of you for all those helpful tips!

I had a horrendous experience at C&W with my first. I was also slightly put off St Georges even though it is my nearest hospital. I gave birth to my second son at St Thomas's in the private wing (due to insurance policy which covered placenta previa which meant c section was only way to go). My experience of the Lanesborough wing was great but you obviously can't directly compare the experience of going privately to not. St Georges were brilliant when my elder son was admitted to the hospital with bird flu and we have used their paediatric A&E lots of times and I have always found the care to be fantastic. I wouldn't write it off. Good luck deciding!