A local study of consumer views of maternity services was initiated because of major shifts in the patterns of maternity service provision and use in a metropolitan region. Women who had given birth to a live infant at one of four hospitals in and near the region in the 1991 calendar year were surveyed about their satisfaction with their antenatal and postnatal care. Questionnaires were sent to 866 women and 519 responded, for an overall response rate of 62 per cent; in the second stage of the study, in-depth interviews were conducted with 50 of the women. Analyses were conducted according to the hospital and to individual sociodemographic characteristics. There were statistically significant differences in satisfaction according to women's sociodemographic characteristics and the type of hospital at which they gave birth. Women who were best off in terms of economic, educational and other social resources reported the highest levels of satisfaction. Analyses by hospital revealed important differences between different types of public hospital, and between public and private hospitals. The results suggest that changing some of the organisational features of antenatal and postnatal care provision may make a significant difference to women's experience of, and satisfaction with, maternity services; most of the organisational changes identified suggest an enhanced or extended role for midwives in the provision of antenatal and postnatal services.