Alexandra Birch

Alex is the Head of Midwifery and Children's Health at Birmingham City University, bringing a wealth of experience from her previous role as Head of Department for Nursing and Midwifery at University of Staffordshire. A registered midwife since 2010, Alex has a strong passion for leadership, quality improvement and creating better environments for high-risk women in maternity care.

Alex’s career spans clinical practice, education and healthcare management. She began her NHS journey in 2007 when she commenced her midwifery training at the University of Wolverhampton, earning a First Class BSc (Hons) in Midwifery, followed by a Postgraduate Diploma in Public Health and a Master's in Leadership and Service Improvement through the NHS Graduate Management Training Scheme. Alexandra has held senior roles across midwifery, emergency care, paediatrics, oncology and commissioning services, notably leading the Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent Maternity Transformation Programme aligned with the national Better Births review.

In higher education since 2019, she has taught across post-registration and undergraduate programmes in health and business, and continues to practice clinically as a midwife through an honorary contract. Alex is also committed to community service, having served as a trustee for a women's charity and acting as a link governor for safeguarding and inclusion in schools.

Alex’s diverse roles and experience perfectly position her to assist students in bringing to life the concepts of nursing, midwifery, leadership and service improvement to ensure that theory is linked to practice and students go on to become high quality healthcare professionals of the future.