Primary Care Trust urged to keep open Battledown Ward

Published on Tue 16th Nov 2004

The Leader of Cheltenham Borough Council, Councillor Andrew McKinlay, has written to the Chief Executive of the Cotswold and Vale Primary Care Trust to urge that Battledown Children's Ward is not closed.

Councillor McKinlay wrote:

"I am writing on behalf of the Cabinet and undersigned members of Cheltenham Borough Council to express our opposition to proposals contained within your document 'Investing in Excellence' concerning the centralisation of neo-natal intensive care and children's services in Gloucester Royal Hospital. We believe that these proposals would reduce the level of service children in Cheltenham and the areas to the north and east of the county currently enjoy, and we have a duty to represent the views of the many families in Cheltenham who will be affected. The strong opposition which the people of Cheltenham feel towards these proposals is shown by the huge petition which has already been amassed by local campaigners.

We understand that the proposals involve turning Battledown Ward in Cheltenham from a 24 hour fully staffed inpatient ward into an assessment unit which would close at 10pm each night. Any children requiring overnight care would then be transported to Gloucester. This is a huge blow to thousands of families, above all because when children are sick one of the things they need most is to have their treatment near to home, with their parents and other family members close at hand.

Our specific concerns are these:

1. Gloucestershire is a large rural county, with inadequate public transport. Many people, and often the poorest people, in rural areas around Cheltenham are reliant on this inadequate service to bring their children to Cheltenham, and to visit them while they are in hospital. If they are then expected to undertake another journey to Gloucester, and return late at night, they will inevitably struggle. The proposals do not include any plans to help people in this situation, either practically or financially. Those who are already socially excluded will in fact be worse off, and this is unacceptable.

We are aware that the pressure on voluntary transport agencies in Cheltenham is intense. The NHS Overview and Scrutiny Committee is currently conducting an Inquiry into transport to NHS services, and Cheltenham Community Transport has expressed the strong view that they would find it extremely difficult to cope with increased journeys to and from Gloucester.

2. The proposals involve an overall reduction in the number of paediatric beds. We know that this is unlikely to cause a problem in the short term, but we think it is very short sighted. The Regional Spatial Strategy is proposing massive house building in the areas around Cheltenham and Gloucester, and this expansion in population if it occurs will increase the pressure on NHS services.

3. The consultation document suggests that change is being driven by clinicians concerned about the problems of recruiting high quality colleagues. However, we know from the public consultation meetings that not all clinicians are convinced by this argument. That the proposals do not have the support of consultants is very worrying. In addition, we understand that a number of nurses are unwilling to transfer to Gloucester. We are therefore concerned that the proposals will not solve the acknowledged staffing problems.

4. A number of families with children being treated at Cheltenham enjoy the benefits of being able to take their children straight to Battledown in the event of an emergency. The children are then in a familiar environment with consultants and nurses whom they know. No assurances have been given that this excellent system would continue.

5. We are extremely concerned that the proposals for centralisation will inevitably lead to a further consultation on moving the remaining maternity services to Gloucester. In addition, we wonder whether an assessment has been made of the impact on orthopaedic surgery and other services in Cheltenham should no children be staying in overnight.

The paediatric facilities currently provided in Battledown Ward are excellent, and we believe that the people of Cheltenham are to be congratulated for the way that they have fought to retain them.

We urge that the decision to centralise services is fundamentally reconsidered. At the very least, full consideration be given to providing a nurse-led 24 hour ward at Battledown. A 24-hour unit would certainly not overcome all our concerns, but it would make a big difference to many families.

We hope that these concerns will be considered as representative of the views of the overwhelming majority of the people of Cheltenham."