Poorer families are being denied millions of pounds in compensation from the NHS for maternity care failings compared with wealthier families, The Independent can reveal.

Families whose babies experience brain damage due to negligent maternity care can receive multimillion-pound payouts to cover costs relating to the child’s future care and accommodation, based on their medical need.

But a separate element covering the child’s predicted “loss of future earnings” is calculated on the basis of their family’s existing income and education levels, meaning that more affluent families get more cash.

Critics have condemned the system as “unfair”, highlighting the fact that it gives the least financial support to the families who “need it the most”, and have called for earnings payments to be linked to the average wage.