Stuart Anderson MP Champions Ludlow Community Hospital Plan in Parliament
Ludlow Community Hospital has been put on the parliamentary agenda by Stuart Anderson MP, who has called on Ministers to improve local healthcare provision in rural communities. It was part of Health and Social Care Questions in Parliament on Tuesday, 19th November 2024. Stuart said that the plans would transform local community healthcare in this rural town, and asked the Minister to meet with him to discuss a way forward for the proposal. Stuart had previously written to the Health Secretary to request a meeting but has not yet received a response. So, Stuart took the opportunity to ask the question directly on the floor of the House of Commons as part of the Ministerial Question Time session.
In his recent letter to the Health Secretary, Stuart endorsed the proposals for a new community hospital at Ludlow Eco Park. He said that the plans would deliver on the Health Secretary's ambition to transform the NHS into a neighbourhood health service, who has promised to “rebuild the health service around what patients tell us they need.” The 10-year plan for the NHS is expected to deliver on the three big shifts needed to move healthcare from hospital to the community, analogue to digital, and sickness to prevention.
Stuart said that rural areas must feature prominently in the government's plan to make the NHS more neighbourly. He said that the proposals for a new Community Hospital in Ludlow would make it "faster, simpler, and fairer" to access local services and help to achieve better outcomes for local residents. He added that the exciting proposal has been backed by local health campaigners, NHS officials, and GPs. The site is already owned by Shropshire Community Health NHS Trust (ShropComm) and is just one mile away from the current building on Gravel Hill.
Stuart's question in Parliament follows a recent written question that he had tabled, calling on the government to increase funding available to, and improve recruitment for, community hospitals. In their response published on 24th October 2024, Ministers stated that community hospitals would benefit from national programmes "aimed at increasing recruitment by widening access, supporting diversity, and attracting people new to care from local communities, as well as improving recruitment processes."
Ahead of the General Election, Stuart had made enhancing public services a key part of his plan for South Shropshire and committed to working with them to meet the future healthcare needs of residents. He added that the proposals have the potential to deliver an outstanding facility for Ludlow and will continue to champion the proposals.
Stuart Anderson MP said:
"Ludlow Community Hospital is an important part of our health system in South Shropshire. Yet, the building has continued to show signs of significant deterioration and questions have been raised about its sustainability in the longer term. While I welcome the Government's plan to make the NHS more neighbourly, I hope that rural areas like South Shropshire will feature prominently in it. So, I have asked the Minister to meet with me to discuss our proposal to redevelop the site in Ludlow with modern facilities."
Substantive Question: What steps his Department is taking to improve local healthcare provision in rural communities.
Supplementary Question: The local NHS trust have an approved site for a new hospital in Ludlow. This could transform local community healthcare in this rural town. Will my right honourable friend meet with me to discuss the way forward for this proposal?
