MP’s fury as primary care hub plan for Houghton Regis is 'scrapped'

Some of Luton, Dunstable and Houghton Regis’s long awaited community health schemes look to be scrapped due to ‘revenue constraints’.

And South West Bedfordshire MP Andrew Selous has hit out at the decisions, which affect a primary care hub in Houghton Regis, along with many others.

He told the Integrated Care Board for BLMK on Wednesday (January 11) that people had bought their homes as they believed a health facility would be built nearby.

“I have had people who’ve written to me all last night and this morning following my post after you announced this meeting quite late on Monday, saying that they bought their homes on the basis that there would be a health hub and a surgery near their home,” he said.

“They thought they could rely on that and I just want to convey the very, very deep anger about what is proposed here.”

The MP requested that the proposals were not signed off at the meeting to enable a rethink to provide some fairness and equity for his constituents and the rest of BLMK.

Among the plans impacted are a proposal to relocate a surgery in Caddington into vacant school building, exploring utilisation of a non-GMS room at Toddington, the early exploration of a five consulting room extension to help with a practice in Barton, the relocation of the main primary care services to integrated health & social care hub along with community, mental health and social care in Houghton Regis although the practice is to retain some presence in the town, the relocation of up to three practices into new build hub facility in Luton town centre, along with a range of community and mental health service, and several refurbishment schemes at Farley Hill, Lea Valley and Wigmore put on hold.

One scheme to continue is the relocation of Priory Gardens Surgery in Dunstable within an integrated Health & Care Hub. Central Bedfordshire Council is delivering the building.

After the committee members approved the indicative budget, the list of schemes, and to apply any additional funding on a prioritised basis, Mr Selous said: “As I read the paper, we are just talking about a lack of £2.915 million which is absolutely minuscule in terms of your £1.7 billion budget.

“I simply do not believe that you cannot find £2.9 million pounds out of your £1.7 billion pound budget to enable these vital primary care schemes to proceed. It is simply outrageous, I’m sorry to speak so strongly, but I’m speaking mildly compared with the anger of my constituents on this.

“This has not been a good meeting, it has not been a good process and there’s a lot of work to be done. I think you need to go back to your £1.7 billion pound budget and do a little bit of reprioritisation in it and I’m sorry to speak with such feelings… it’s very, very disappointing,” he said.

A spokeswoman for the BLMK ICB said: “A robust prioritisation process has been undertaken to establish the schemes that will be taken forward initially. We are committed to getting these schemes under way as soon as possible to improve access for residents. We are continuing to work with health and care partners to develop proposals for Integrated Health and Care Hubs."