Private fertility clinics in London/Herts/Camb

[RiderofRohan]

Can anyone recommend IVF clinics in London, Hertfordshire or Cambridgeshire?

I'm currently with CRGH City and while the actual medical care is fine, I find the whole organisation very disjointed. I feel like I have to chase them up for everything (finance, theatre, nurses...), kind of the right hand doesn't know the left situation. I'm currently awaiting a procedure under them and then we may need IVF if we still don't fall pregnant.

Any recommendations for clinics with good success rates that have care coordinators who take ownership of the patient journey? Someone who will liaise with the different teams so the patient doesn't have to chase up various departments.

Thanks in advance

I started off my IVF journey with Bourne Hall but found the admin / organisation and communication with them a nightmare. E.g. I'd get emails confirming appointment times that were different to the ones they've previously given me and then only be able to communicate via a nurses mailbox (with a different person responding each time) to sort it out. My instructions for injections were links to YouTube videos and no one explained to me what the medication on the timetable was for.

Then moved to Herts & Essex and it's been a complete difference - able to phone up and speak to people, I haven't had to chase anything, I had an appointment with a nurse to talk through my protocol, they've personally shown me how to do my injections "don't leave her until you feel confident" and they've followed up to see how I am when things haven't gone well. (Two cycles ending in miscarriage).

I also have low AMH and felt other clinics (I had an initial consultation with Guys) were pushing me towards donor eggs in meeting no.1 whereas Herts and Essex have really worked hard to tweak my protocol (and have also been honest about my the challenges of using my own eggs).

Overall, really recommend Herts & Essex.

Should also add that Herts and Essex use an app which is really useful for setting out all your appointment and medication reminders, plus also communicating with the nurses. They've responded to many of my panicking worries really quickly and put my mind at rest.

@backinthefog thank you so much. I really appreciate the recommendation. I looked into this clinic but saw their pregnancy success rates werent the best. Or maybe I got the wrong end of the stick? Otherwise I'd be keen as it's a convenient location for us.

Sorry to hear about the miscarriage. Are you having another cycle?

@RiderofRohan ah I'm not sure about the stats actually. I started looking at these when we were looking for a clinic but got very confused about how to compare like with like and ended up going with Herts & Essex just because I felt so comfortable with them after our initial meetings. Also, with my low ovarian reserve I suspect I'm not an "ideal customer" for most fertility clinics because IVF will always be more challenging for someone with fewer eggs left - I suspect this is why Guys were pushing me to jump straight to donor eggs (better for their stats) than working with me to design a protocol that will give me the best chance of using my eggs (like Herts & Essex did).

I've had two full fresh cycles of IVF so far which both resulted in miscarriage and two natural pregnancies which resulted in loss (all over the last 15 months). So I'm now taking a break and having some tests done for recurrent miscarriage and hoping that maybe we could fall pregnant naturally again (maybe unrealistic - I don't know). If we do go back to IVF then I'd go back to Herts & Essex.

I should probably also add that my last natural pregnancy came just as I was about to do another IVF cycle and the clinic were also very supportive with that pregnancy even though I wasn't paying them for IVF at that point - the doctor prescribed me progesterone to support the pregnancy, talked me through my vitamins and the nurses were on hand via the app with any questions. I also had several early scans at the clinic. I really felt that they were trying to do all they could to help us achieve a positive outcome.

Hi, just wondered when you went with in the end? I am also trying to weigh up local options s and currently looking at Cambridge IVF, Bourn Hall and Herts and Essex. Completely confused!

Looking for reviews and experiences on fertility treatment at Cambridge IVF and Bourn Hall. Self funded and so really feeling the pressure to pick the right clinic. Any feedback on either would be much appreciated.

Hi there, do you mind me asking who you chose in the end and if any reviews?

Thanks!

We've been having our tests at Cambridge ivf, and from what we've seen so far I wouldnt reccomend them. I've only been once, but husband has had to go a few times. Parking is a nightmare, staff have been rude, the reception was dirty. The nurse who took my bloods didn't wear gloves, and her finger nails were filthy. Uniforms weren't ironed.
This all may sound so silly, but for us if we were choosing, this isn't where I'd want to create my family.

We went with Cambridge IVF, at the time we felt they were least likely to push unnecessary add ons at our expense, logistically and financially they was also more viable. Sadly our 1st cycle ended in a termination at 14 weeks due to chromosomal abnormality. I felt disappointed that we had to wait two months for a follow up review with a consultant. I am sure they do not make people wait two months when wanting them to sign up. I am also left a bit sceptical about their views on embryo testing I.e. is it that they don’t approve of it or is it that they just don’t have the skills to deliver that. The admin and logistics were chaotic and often inconsistent. The experience was far from perfect but I guess they are an NHS clinic and we knew it would be no frills. We are sticking with them for another cycle and then will evaluate….in all honesty I don’t think a perfect clinic exists from all the reviews I have ready of many clinics. Sorry to be so gloom and doom!

@backinthefog do you mind telling me how low your results for amh were please? And your age. Herts and Essex told me they couldn't help me as mine were too low. How have things gone since you posted? Thanks so much.

Hey,
My AMH was last tested in October 2023 and it was 1.1 pmol/l - so very low!

They were pushing donor eggs quite hard by this point, but agreed to let me try a dual stim cycle provided I had at least 1 follicle. On a scan I had 6 - which was much higher than expected for my AMH.

However, I never started that cycle because I found out I was pregnant on Christmas Day (was supposed to start the cycle straight after Boxing Day). That pregnancy unfortunately ended in another loss at 9 weeks in February (the baby had triploidy and triple X).

Concurrently to this, my husband had a varicocele operation just before Christmas (generally against all medical advice because doctors told us it probably would make no difference). The reason we ended up doing IVF in the first place was because of poor sperm quality but then every fertility doctor after that point became fixated on my low AMH as being the issue. For me, the operation was worth doing just to know we tried everything.

Anyway, I fell pregnant naturally again in May 2025 and I am currently 21 weeks pregnant with a baby boy. So far, baby has passed all screen tests and scans. Obviously I’m still very cautious. I’ll never know if focusing on sperm quality and doing the varicocele was the thing that made the difference this time but it feels like too much of a coincidence after 5 previous losses for it not to have done.

Before I fell pregnant I did have a few appointments with Create as I was minded to give natural modified IVF a go. But, by then, my previously regular cycles had started to become less regular and I had an anovulatory cycle so I’m not sure if I would have gone ahead.

how low is your AMH? IVF with low AMH is such a slog. Wishing you lots of luck.

Sorry @JJtrying I replied to you above but just noticed I didn’t do it as a reply.