“We do not need another consultation”: Lutterworth councillor calls for clear plan for Feilding Palmer Hospital
A councillor in Lutterworth has written to the Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland Integrated Care Board, calling for an end to what he described as “more than ten years of confusion, repeated consultations, and shifting promises” over the future of the town’s community hospital.
Feilding Palmer Hospital, which currently offers community healthcare services, closed its inpatient beds during the pandemic, leaving those needing inpatient treatment to go to hospitals in Coventry or Leicester.
Cllr Martin Sarfas has had more than 2,000 people sign his petition calling for the hospital to be retained, improved, and properly reopened.
A spokesperson for Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland Integrated Care Board said: “We remain committed to securing a sustainable future for Feilding Palmer that meets the changing health needs of people in Lutterworth and the surrounding area.”
In his letter to the board, Cllr Sarfas asked for a single clear, realistic plan, confirmed funding, a published timeline and regular updates.
The Lutterworth East councillor said: “For 10 to 12 years, the people of Lutterworth have been patient. We have attended meetings, filled in questionnaires, signed petitions, and shared our stories. We have been consulted, re-consulted, and consulted again - yet we are no closer to having our hospital back.
“We do not need another report. We do not need another consultation. We need one honest plan - and we need it delivered. Our residents deserve local healthcare. Our older residents should not have to travel miles for appointments that used to be on their doorstep.”
Earlier this year, a group of campaigners unveiled their plans to upgrade Feilding Palmer Hospital to better serve the people in south Leicestershire.
The Mary Guppy Group has been calling for improvements to the hospital for more than a decade, and campaigned for the site to be kept open when it faced closure during the pandemic in 2020.
A spokesperson for the board said: “Working with the Lutterworth Development Group, we are developing a Case for Change based on local health needs, population growth, existing services and feedback from local people, with a focus on providing more care closer to home.
“Feilding Palmer has also been put forward for national capital investment to support the development of neighbourhood health facilities, and we are awaiting the outcome. While it is too early to confirm a timetable, we are committed to maintaining momentum and will provide further updates as the work progresses.”
But the councillor added: “Our community hospital should be serving us, not standing empty while decisions are endlessly delayed.
“Stop producing plans that are subsequently abandoned. Produce one realistic plan - and then deliver on it. The people of Lutterworth have waited long enough.”