Word is, there is a Pop up protest on Thursday 13 Aug, 1pm outside Shay Stadium, Halifax. Appropriate placard: Is this what NO PUBLIC OPPOSITION LOOKS LIKE?

On behalf of the thousands of people who oppose NHS bosses’ plans to cut acute and emergency hospital services and take others out of the hospital and put them into the community, Rosemary Hedges has asked Calderdale Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) Governing Body to explain at their meeting on 13th August, why they are now saying that in the last 3 years they have received no complaints about these plans.

This statement is in a document that Calderdale CCG’s Head of Service Improvement, Debbie Graham, is presenting to the CCG Governing Body meeting. (Page 12, box 2)

But well over 1600 people in Calderdale have signed a Calderdale 38 Degrees NHS Campaign petition opposing the plans to cut our hospital services. Ms Hedges, who is Secretary of the Campaign, has written to the CCG, saying:

“We wish to state that we have done nothing BUT make complaints about this model for the last 3 years.  We have done this through letters to the CCG, letters to the local press, we have held meetings with you and sent you reams of information about our concerns and disagreement with this model.  We attended all of your early engagement events when you were still asking ordinary members of the community what they thought.  I myself  attended the event at Mytholmroyd Community Centre and state VERY clearly that I did not agree with this model and I did not want it implemented, as did many of my colleagues. There is huge public opposition to this model of moving services out of our hospital so that you can all but close it down.   Please can you explain why none of this information has been recorded, and how you can reach the conclusion that there have been no complaints about it.”

Ms Hedges is expecting an answer at the Calderdale Clinical Commissioning Group Governing Body meeting tomorrow, 13th August. The meeting is from 2-5.30pm at the Shay Stadium, Halifax and is open to the public.

Calderdale 38 Degrees NHS campaign also wants an answer tomorrow to the question of what work the Clinical Commissioning Group is doing about Calderdale Council’s People’s Commission recommendation that the CCG with its partners should examine options for restructuring Calderdale Royal Hospital’s PFI debt.