Meghan set to break with tradition by not having baby at Lindo Wing

The Duchess of Sussex is expected to break with modern royal tradition by not having her baby at the Lindo Wing.

Meghan is said to have decided against following in the footsteps of the Duchess of Cambridge, who gave birth to all three of her children at the private maternity centre at St Mary’s Hospital in Paddington, London.

The Lindo was also where the late Princess of Wales delivered Princes William and Harry, and the exclusive wing was used by the Princess Royal for the births of her two children.

Meghan and Harry are said to have opted for a maternity unit closer to their Windsor home in a bid for more privacy.

Kate and William posed on the steps of the Lindo with each of their three children – Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis.

Meghan could choose the Mulberry Birth Centre at Frimley Park Hospital in Camberley, Surrey, which is 15 miles from Frogmore Cottage, or the Juniper Birth Centre at Wexham Park Hospital – which both offer a home-from-home environment for lower-risk births.

If Meghan is treated the same as other pregnant mothers, she will be subject to a first-come, first-served scenario – so could miss out on using the birthing centres if they are already full when she goes into labour.

The Mulberry Birth Centre at Frimley Park has five birth rooms, with en-suite facilities and one which includes a birthing pool with mood lighting.

At Frimley Park Hospital, mothers who wish for extra privacy after the birth of their baby can pay for a private single room.

But these cannot be booked in advance and do not have en-suite facilities.

At Wexham Park Hospital there are two amenity rooms which NHS patients can pay for after the birth. They cost £190 each, are first-come first-served and cannot be booked ahead of schedule.

Frimley Park was the hospital that helped save the life of the Countess of Wessex following complications during the premature birth of her daughter, Lady Louise Mountbatten-Windsor.

Louise was the Queen’s first grandchild to be born in an NHS hospital.

Sophie’s son, Viscount Severn, was also born there in 2007.

Other options for Meghan could include another private hospital, or a home birth – as always used to be the custom for royal babies.

Meghan could be attended by Guy Thorpe-Beeston, surgeon-gynaecologist to the royal household, and Alan Farthing, the Queen’s surgeon-gynaecologist, who cared for Kate during her deliveries.

Kensington Palace declined to comment.