Student midwives have been left in limbo after a university pulled their placements at a scandal-hit hospital.

Canterbury Christ Church University has told its trainees not to attend their shifts at William Harvey Hospital in Ashford due to ongoing safety fears.

The "gutted" class members were told of the suspension at an emergency meeting at the university campus on Friday.

"We got sent an email late on Thursday calling us in for an emergency meeting on Friday," one told KentOnline.

"When we first got that email we were all so panicked as we had no idea what it was about. We all thought worst case, the course has been stopped, but then actually finding out the news I think all we all just felt gutted."

A surprise inspection from healthcare watchdog CQC found a number of areas of concern at the Harvey and its sister hospital, the QEQM in Margate.

East Kent Hospitals University NHS Foundation Trust (EKHUFT), which runs both faculties, was recently the subject of a nationwide scandal after a report revealed the scale of failings which resulted in unnecessary deaths and injuries in babies and mothers.

The trainee midwife said she and her coursemates have been left without answers.

"They want to sort us out with alternative placements but it’s not sounding promising so we are all in the dark," she added.

"Students at QEQM were also present at the urgent meeting however they have not been suspended as of yet, they were basically told to prepare just in case.

"If it's not sorted I don't know what will happen because we legally need to do 2,300 hours on placement to pass."

A spokesman for the university said the decision to suspend placements at the hospital was "not a decision we have taken lightly".

"We have a responsibility to our students to maintain our high placement standards and ensure they acquire the required skills and experience in a safe environment to complete their degree courses and become a professional and confident midwife," she added.

“We are aware that this will impact our students in different ways. Therefore, we are putting in place extra teaching, training, and financial support for our students, alongside arranging alternative placements at other practices to minimise any disruption."

Sarah Shingler, chief nursing and midwifery officer for EKHUFT, said services during the suspension would not be affected.

"I want to thank the student midwives who have been valued members of our team, for their work and commitment, during their time with us," she said.

"We will continue to work with the university to reinstate midwifery education at the William Harvey Hospital as soon as possible.

“I want to reassure women that student midwives are supernumerary and are not part of our staffing rota, and the service at William Harvey will not be affected by this decision.”