How Do UK Baby Outcomes Compare Internationally?

England and Wales recorded an infant mortality rate of 3.6 deaths per 1,000 live births in 2022 — a figure that has barely shifted since 2014.^[1] Before that, the rate had fallen steadily for decades. The stall matters because comparable nations have kept improving: Germany now sits at 3.0, France at 3.2, the Netherlands at 3.4, and Sweden at 2.3.^[2] More than 3,000 stillbirths occur in England and Wales each year. Neonatal deaths — those in the first 28 days — account for the majority of all infant mortality, and preterm birth is the single leading cause, affecting around 1 in 13 pregnancies.

The death rate is not distributed evenly. In the most deprived areas, 5.4 babies per 1,000 live births die before their first birthday; in the least deprived, the figure is 2.2 — a gap of more than 2.5 times.^[1] Race compounds this: MBRRACE-UK's annual perinatal mortality reports have consistently found that babies born to Black and South Asian mothers face significantly elevated risks of stillbirth and neonatal death, driven by a combination of underlying health conditions, access to antenatal care, and institutional failings in maternity services.^[3] Regional variation mirrors the deprivation gradient, with infant mortality rates in parts of the North and Midlands persistently above the national average.