There were queues across the car park, people standing everywhere, some looking in through the windows, others unfortunately having to turn away. It was twice the size of the meeting in the same hall in March 2017 after they stole the hospital’s beds, and probably even bigger than one in Seaton Town Hall in late 2016 when bed cuts were first proposed.
We had fantastic contributions from all our speakers, especially Dr Mark Welland of the League of Friends (above) and Richard Foord MP, and also from around 20 people from the floor. There was complete unity on the need to save the hospital wing for use by the League, Re:store and other local groups promoting health and wellbeing (for example, for a palliative care service), and for this to be done by renting or even buying the wing – as long as this is at minimal cost, since the local community paid in full for building the wing in the first place.
We unanimously established a Seaton Hospital Steering Committee to fully represent the local community in all matters relating to the future of the hospital. As organiser of the meeting and de facto acting secretary for the committee, I will write to the ICB and NHS Property Services, who declined to attend, to inform them of its outcome.
Decisions
1. It was agreed to ask all supporters to write to Dr Sarah Wollaston, the chair of the ICB, to support our case (she is the former MP for Totnes and former Chair of the Health Select Committee).
Email her at d-icb.corporateservices@nhs.net or write to Dr Sarah Wollaston, Chair, NHS Devon Integrated Care Board, County Hall, EXETER EX2 4QD. Mark your letter ‘for the personal attention of Dr Wollaston’ & also ‘please circulate to all members of the Board’. [Board members can be found here – Makes interesting reading – Owl]
2. There will be a protest outside Health Scrutiny at County Hall on Thursday 9 November, 9.30-10.30. We will be joining with Teignmouth whose hospital is also being discussed at Scrutiny. The meeting starts at 10.30 and we will then all go inside, where Jack Rowland and I will be presenting the Seaton case at the beginning of the meeting (you don’t necessarily have to stay for their discussion which may be quite a bit later). WE NEED TO ORGANISE CARS & PLACARDS (HOME-MADE WILL BE FINE).
3. We are planning a day of action on Saturday 18 November. The current proposal is to leaflet and collect signatures for a petition in the centre of Seaton (outside Tesco and/or Aldi?), Colyton, Beer etc., but WE NEED YOUR IDEAS.
There will be an ORGANISING MEETING for these actions from 4.15-5.45 on Monday 6 November in the Old Picture House, Harbour Rd, Seaton.
Please come along if you would like to help – LET ME KNOW by email (saveseatonhospital@gmail.com) so that we have an idea of numbers. Also let me know if you’d like to help on either 9th or 18th but can’t make it on Monday.
Also follow the campaign on: Seaton & Colyton Matters blog
East Devon Watch 