Secretary of State for Health Matt Hancock to review hospitals shake up plan

The shake up of care services at Calderdale Royal Hospital and Huddersfield Royal Infirmary was referred to the Independent reconfiguration Panel (IRP) by the former Secretary of State for Health Jeremy Hunt in May.

However his replacement Matt Hancock MP is set to review amended plans in a new report and is being urged by the Leader of Calderdale Council Councillor Tim Swift to push forward with the plan.

The Council has expressed support for the proposals, drafted by Calderdale Clinical Commissioning Group and Calderdale and Huddersfield NHS Foundation Trust, which would potentially bring nearly £200 million investment to Calderdale and Huddersfield Foundation Trust, transforming Calderdale Royal Hospital, and ensuring better acute and urgent care for our residents.

“After six years of consultation and debate on the future of urgent health care in Calderdale and Huddersfield we are now at a point where we can secure the investment which is needed to deliver these vital services,” said Coun Swift.

“We understand that the proposals being submitted to NHS England from our local health system reflect a shift in provision across both hospital sites which respond to the concerns expressed by the Joint Scrutiny Panel, and crucially are in line with the recommendations of our People’s Commission.

“We welcome the support of the West Yorkshire and Harrogate Health and Care Partnership in making this proposed capital investment its top priority within the region.

"In view of this, my letter calls upon the new Secretary of State, to seize the opportunity to take the final decision on this investment.

“I have asked that local people receive a positive outcome to these proposals within the next three months, given our support for the case being made, and our huge energy and ambition to get the best for Calderdale building upon our work delivered over the past 18 months through our ‘Calderdale Cares’ programme.

"This will ensure that our residents will receive timely, high quality and safe planned and unplanned hospital care whenever it is needed.”

Coun Swift has sent a letter to Mr Hancock which call upon him ‘to seize the opportunity to take the final decision on this investment’.

In his letter Coun Swift said he welcomed ‘the restated commitment to develop capacity at Calderdale Royal Hospital’ and ‘supports the model of specialised hospitals’.

The original proposals by the involved replacing Huddersfield’s hospital with a smaller site and centralise A&E services in Halifax.