Private Growth Scan in London
Estimated fetal weight, amniotic fluid, placental position and umbilical blood flow — measured properly and explained on screen as we scan, by the sonographer scanning you.
- 30-minute appointment — unhurried, where most clinics allow 20
- Growth plotted against gestational age, not guessed
- Umbilical artery Doppler included
- Findings explained during the scan; report usually within two hours
- No GP referral required — report and images included
CQC-registered clinic · Provider ID 1-2775844974 · HCPC-registered sonographers
What is a growth scan?
A growth scan measures the baby — head circumference, abdominal circumference and femur length — and converts those into an estimated fetal weight, plotted against how many weeks you are. It also assesses the amniotic fluid around the baby, where the placenta lies, and blood flow through the umbilical cord.
It is usually performed from around 24 weeks, and its value comes from context: a single weight means little on its own, but a weight plotted against gestational age — and, better still, against a previous scan — shows whether growth is following a sensible trajectory.
It is not an anomaly scan. Detailed assessment of the baby’s structure and organs is the 20-week anomaly scan, which is an NHS pathway scan arranged through your midwife and not something we provide.
Why might I need a growth scan?
Most growth scans are booked for reassurance in the third trimester, often by people measuring ahead or behind at midwife appointments, or carrying a baby that feels small or large. Some are booked because a previous pregnancy involved growth restriction, and the worry returns.
The scan answers a specific question: is this baby growing along a normal trajectory, is there enough fluid, and is the cord flow normal. Those three together are what obstetric teams use to judge whether a pregnancy needs closer monitoring.
- Measuring ahead or behind at midwife appointments
- A bump that feels small, large, or has not changed
- Growth restriction in a previous pregnancy
- Reassurance between NHS appointments in the third trimester
- A low-lying placenta needing a position check
- Twins, where growth is monitored more closely
- Head circumference and biparietal diameter
- Abdominal circumference
- Femur length
- Estimated fetal weight, plotted against gestational age
- Amniotic fluid volume
- Placental position and umbilical artery Doppler
- Presentation — head down or breech
If your baby’s movements have reduced, changed or stopped, contact your maternity unit or triage line immediately, at any hour. This is the one situation where booking a private scan is the wrong action: maternity triage can monitor the baby’s heart rate continuously, which a scan appointment cannot, and they would rather hear from you than not. The same applies to bleeding, severe abdominal pain, a severe headache with visual disturbance, or sudden swelling of the face and hands.
Is a growth scan right for me?
A growth scan is a good fit if any of these sound like you:
- ✓You are 24 weeks or more and want growth checked
- ✓Your bump has been measuring ahead or behind
- ✓You had growth restriction or a small baby last time
- ✓You want reassurance between NHS appointments
- ✓You have been told the placenta is low and want it rechecked
- ✓You are carrying twins and want growth followed more closely
And when it is not the right booking
Your baby’s movements have reduced or changed — call your maternity triage line now. They can monitor the heart rate continuously; a scan appointment cannot, and it should not delay you.
You want the anomaly scan — detailed structural assessment at 20 weeks is an NHS pathway scan through your midwife. We do not provide it.
You want a bonding scan — we do not offer them. Every scan here has to answer a clinical question.
If your situation needs maternity triage rather than a scan, we will tell you when you call.
What happens on the day
- 1
Arrive — no preparation neededNo fasting and no full bladder required in the third trimester. The appointment is 30 minutes.
- 2
We check your dates and historyYour gestational age, any previous scans and what your midwife has said. Growth is only interpretable against dates, so this matters.
- 3
The measurementsHead circumference, abdominal circumference and femur length, each taken carefully and more than once, then converted to an estimated fetal weight.
- 4
Fluid, placenta and DopplerAmniotic fluid volume assessed, placental position checked, and umbilical artery blood flow measured with Doppler.
- 5
Plotted, not just statedThe weight is plotted against your gestational age — and against a previous scan where you have one — so you see the trajectory rather than a bare number.
- 6
Your report and imagesExplained on screen during the scan, with the written report usually with you within two hours, ready for your midwife or obstetric team.
How growth is actually judged
Three measurements, read together — and an honest word about precision.
Estimated weight is an estimate
Ultrasound weight estimation carries a margin of error of roughly 10 to 15 per cent either way. A baby estimated at 3 kg may be meaningfully heavier or lighter at birth — which is why trajectory matters more than any single figure.
Amniotic fluid matters as much
Fluid volume reflects how the baby is coping. Too little or too much can be the first sign that a pregnancy needs closer monitoring, sometimes before growth itself changes.
Doppler shows the supply line
Umbilical artery Doppler measures resistance in the cord vessels. Where growth is slowing, it helps distinguish a baby who is constitutionally small from one whose supply is under strain.
What the scan may show
We will not use an estimate to frighten or to reassure beyond what it supports. A weight estimate carries real margin, and decisions about timing or delivery belong with your obstetric team reading it alongside everything else they know about your pregnancy.
See the trajectory, not just a number
Weight, fluid, placenta and cord Doppler in one 30-minute appointment from 24 weeks — explained on screen as we scan, report usually within two hours.
How we run growth scans
Scanned by the person explaining it
The sonographer performing your scan talks you through it and writes your report. Nothing is sent to a remote reader.
Plotted against your dates
A weight without a curve is close to meaningless. We plot it, and against your previous scan where you have one.
Doppler included as standard
Umbilical artery Doppler is part of the scan, not an upsell — it is often the measurement that matters most.
We route urgent findings properly
If something needs your maternity team today rather than at your next appointment, we say so and write the report for them.
Growth scans — your questions answered
When should I have a growth scan?
How accurate is the estimated weight?
Is this the same as the 20-week anomaly scan?
My baby is measuring small. Should I be worried?
What does the umbilical artery Doppler tell you?
Can you tell me if the placenta is low?
Will you tell me the baby’s position?
Do I need a full bladder?
My baby’s movements have changed. Should I book a growth scan?
Will my midwife accept a private scan report?
Other pregnancy scans we offer
Where can you get a growth scan in London?
Our clinic is at 5a Lucerne Mews, Kensington, London W8 4ED — a quiet mews three minutes on foot from Notting Hill Gate, serving Kensington, Notting Hill, Holland Park, Bayswater and central London.
Short-notice appointments are often available. Call 0203 051 6506 for today’s availability.
Getting here
By tube: Notting Hill Gate — three minutes’ walk.
By bus: Routes along Notting Hill Gate and Kensington Church Street stop nearby.
By car: On-street parking nearby — full options in directions & parking.
Growth measured properly
Estimated weight plotted against your dates, with fluid, placenta and umbilical Doppler — explained on screen as we scan, with a report your midwife or obstetric team can act on.
Kensington, London W8 4ED
3 mins from Notting Hill Gate
Written and clinically reviewed by the HCPC-registered sonographers who perform this scan at IUS London — a CQC-registered diagnostic ultrasound clinic (Provider ID 1-2775844974). Your own findings are explained to you at the scan and set out in your report.
Author: Yianni Kiromitis, Senior Sonographer, HCPC RA38415 — over 20 years’ experience in NHS and private ultrasound · Reviewed 10 August 2026