Medical Centre (Brownsover)

Jim Shannon Excerpts

Monday 7th March 2016 Commons Chamber

[Mark Pawsey (Rugby) (Con)]

I am grateful to have secured the debate, which gives me the opportunity to raise an important issue in my constituency. I will speak about the delays that have occurred, over several years, in the provision of a new medical facility in the area of Brownsover, in the town of Rugby.

Rugby is one of the fastest growing towns in the country, and we have a positive attitude towards new development. There has been a great deal of new housing development in recent years, mostly in the north of the borough in and around the area known as Brownsover. Historically, Brownsover has faced a number of complex challenges, which the community and the local authority, Rugby Borough Council, have not shied away from. A lot of investment has been put into overcoming those challenges. The area comprises a mix of social, sheltered and affordable housing as well as privately owned homes, with a population made up of a broad range of different age groups. A large number of young families live in the area, as well as a substantial elderly population. Despite the much-welcomed investment in Brownsover, with additional retail outlets and new housing, and the significant increase in population that has come with it, we have yet to see significant investment in the vital area of local health provision.

The original doctors’ surgery, which dates back 50 years or so, was established as the area developed. Despite the growth of the area and of the population, there is no evidence that the surgery was extended or that there was any recognition of the need for a bigger surgery. Plans for a new medical facility in Brownsover were first proposed back in 2002. The local authority, conscious of the specific needs of the area, began working on plans, under which it would supply land it owned, free of charge, to a developer willing to provide a community centre, alongside an all-encompassing modern medical facility, as part of the wider plan to revitalise the area.

The years passed, and for many years there was no progress, but plans for a new medical centre resurfaced in 2011. A planning application was submitted to the local authority and was approved that year. At the time, there was a real expectation that work would begin the following year, but, once again, local residents were left exasperated as the months and years passed and no works were begun. The community, which had been so optimistic when plans were first revealed in 2002, was once more left angry and frustrated—even more so when they were forced to watch from the sidelines as plans for new medical facilities elsewhere in our growing town were approved, particularly a very smart new development on the old cattle market site.

I hope the picture I am painting shows that, for many years, my constituents in Brownsover have suffered disappointment after disappointment, and false promises and false dawns about getting their new medical centre. I must say that the anger in the community reached a tipping point in February 2015, when the news broke that NHS England had withdrawn the contract for the existing local GP practice in Brownsover and that the practice was to close in April—just three months later—which left little time to arrange alternative facilities within the community. The announcement was met with considerable fury within the community, which, as I have said, has complex needs and challenges.

The news of the closure of the GP surgery caused real disquiet within the community. A GP, who was held in high regard, had practised there for 30 years, and this much-valued and much-needed facility—as I have said, the only one in the urban area in the north of Rugby—was serving over 6,600 patients in partnership with its sister surgery in the town centre. Residents felt at ease with the local GPs, who in turn knew the residents’ medical history. There was real concern at the sudden nature of the news. I will come on to the actions taken by NHS England to deal with that concern.

To its credit, one of the first things NHS England did was to provide an opportunity for local residents to pose questions in a series of public meetings. The community expressed real anger at those meetings. They took place on 2 and 9 March, while Parliament was sitting, and on Friday 13 March 2015, when, as I was in my constituency, I was able to attend the one in Brownsover scout hut. The concerns of some pretty angry residents revolved around three issues: first, the lack of notice they had received; secondly, the interim arrangements that would be made; and, thirdly, whether the new surgery they had been promised would actually be delivered, given that they had been given such promises many times before. At the meeting I attended, residents were assured that the new surgery would be provided, and that it would open in the late summer or autumn of 2016.

The news that the new surgery was coming was intended to be the light at the end of the tunnel to appease an incensed community, but there was concern over whether the assurances would be fulfilled. When I attended the meetings, it seemed to me that a delivery time of 18 months was rather optimistic. It seems that that caution was justified, because we are yet to see evidence of any activity to supply the new surgery. There is absolutely no evidence of a spade getting anywhere near the ground. I have recently described the delays in delivering this provision as completely unacceptable. The original opening date of autumn 2016, which was promised by NHS England in the public meetings and to me in meetings in my office, will definitely not be realised.

It is a matter of regret that NHS England has not covered itself in glory in this matter. The news of the closure first came out in February 2015 and patients were informed by letter that the practice would close its doors on 17 April that year. I was notified by NHS England by email on 16 February. That led to a flurry—an avalanche, in fact—of emails from concerned constituents. There was concern about the method by which the news was communicated. One resident showed me a two-page letter that had details on only one side of the piece of paper, leaving them to guess what the other information might be.

The intention was that the surgery would close within three months and that residents would be able to register at a new temporary surgery some 2 miles away in Rugby town centre while the new surgery was built. The distance of 2 miles to the site in Lower Hillmorton Road was a concern for many of the residents for whom it would cause difficulties. Many of those with young children or with particular health needs felt that travelling to the temporary practice would be too much to bear, despite an offer from NHS England to provide transport for residents.

It is easy to understand why people were concerned when the facility in their community had been taken away and a new one had been promised for a number of years. Within the community, we managed to convey the message that there would be some temporary pain in order to achieve a long-term gain. Regrettably, that long-term gain seems to be some distance away.

[Jim Shannon (Strangford) (DUP)]

This debate is not about my area, but I am curious to know whether any consideration has been given to the increasing population? In Belfast, the population will double in the next 20 years, so Northern Ireland has to look forward strategically and have a long-term vision. Has consideration been given to population growth in planning the new surgery? Is it not time for the Government to look to the long term and create the provision for the next 20 or 30 years?

[Mark Pawsey]

The hon. Gentleman raises an interesting point. To a certain extent, that involves chasing a moving target. The surgery that was in the community was completely inadequate for the needs and size of the population. I fear that some of the delays in the delivery of the new surgery are happening because we are trying to anticipate what will be needed in the future. The sense in my community is that we do not have anything now, so let us get on with delivering what has been promised for many years.

I met NHS England in February last year and learned about the temporary arrangements for transferring patients to Lower Hillmorton Road and the cost involved in modifying those premises, which had been deemed inadequate for use as a surgery. Money was therefore spent on that building. I also heard about the plans for delivering the new surgery. Again, I was told that it would be delivered in the late summer or autumn of 2016. I was keen to do all that I could to ensure that those commitments were met. I kept in contact with NHS England and representatives of the Brownsover patients action group, which came together under the capable leadership of Jake Stevenson.

In the second half of 2015, some of us perhaps took our eye off the ball and thought that plans were being worked up and that work would start imminently—we simply waited for things to happen. Things came to a head in early 2016 when, after visit after visit to the site, nothing seemed to be happening and I thought that it was probably time to arrange a further meeting with NHS England, and to invite representatives from the Brownsover patients action group. We also invited NHS Property Services, which had come to take over the project. At that meeting in January or February this year I became increasingly concerned about the lack of progress, and it became clear that the opening of the surgery would be put back for one, two or three years—it was not clear exactly when it would be, because a new business plan needed to be put in place and that was still being worked on, despite previous assurances that the work was going out to tender.

It was equally alarming when we were told at that meeting that it was now possible for a practice to be put into the original buildings on the Brownsover site, which we had originally been told was unsuitable. We learned that that site was to be brought back into operation on a temporary basis, having closed for a year and with 6,600 patients relocated to new practices in the town. For many of my constituents, being told that the old site would once again be available might have been good news, but it meant that the new surgery that the community had been waiting for would be delayed. We now hear that the old site will be made available as a temporary site for three to five years, and we do not believe that that is temporary—it is getting close to being permanent once again.

There are no issues with the availability of land because the local authority will make the land available, and no issues of planning consent because that has already been granted. It seemed that bureaucracy and red tape within the system was going to cause a significant and unacceptable delay, and the light at the end of the tunnel that was promised to my constituents was fading fast. At that point I contacted the Minister, who I am delighted is in his place, and I alerted him to the situation. I am grateful to him for meeting me so swiftly after we made contact.

A couple of weeks ago on 22 February, I and Jake Stevenson from the Brownsover patients action group met the Minister, together with representatives from NHS England and the Department of Health, to outline our concerns. One outcome of that meeting has been that NHS England has become a lot more communicative. It was kind enough to email me on 1 March to update me and advise me that it has awarded a contract to a company to assist it with the business case for the medical centre. That is not a contract for building or delivering the surgery, just to assist with the business case. It is disappointing that in the past 12 months we have got absolutely nowhere. We are no further forward than we were this time last year, and clearly the promises that were made will not be realised.

One key reason why I have brought this matter to the attention of the House is the long history of disappointments that my constituents in Brownsover have gone through over the years. We are now looking for firm assurances that whatever date we are given for the delivery of the new service, it will finally be delivered.



I am very grateful to the Minister for the attention he has given to this matter so far, for the understanding he displayed to members of the patients action group when he met them, and for his sympathy. It is clear that the Minister gets it. He understands why the delivery of the surgery is so important. I was very impressed by his willingness to bring parties together, to talk around the table and to bring about a solution to the challenges in getting this very important provision delivered at the earliest opportunity. I very much hope that in his response to my remarks he will be able to provide the assurances my constituents in Brownsover are looking for.