Hospital campaigners go to Downing Street

A delegation of Arun district and Littlehampton town councillors, alongside concerned residents, took a box of more than 8,000 letters of protest to Downing Street, on Monday, in the hope the Prime Minister would step in to save the hospital.

Determined campaigners met Bognor Regis and Littlehampton MP, Nick Gibb, who criticised the NHS for “betraying” Littlehampton residents after not following through with its proposed build – which was original scheduled to begin almost six years ago.

He said: “This is a good campaign because people in Littlehampton do feel over the years – almost a decade – very betrayed.

“Seven or eight years ago, a huge amount of effort and expense went into working out how to replace a 1920s community hospital with something more modern.

“A plan was devised, drawings were drawn, architects were engaged, the finances were all worked out, a business case was made and the decision was taken to rebuild.

“The day after the 1920s building was demolished, they put the whole thing on hold because of the ‘Fit for the Future’ view and I think the people of Littlehampton feel very betrayed by that.

“Despite efforts and campaigns over six years, we are still today where we were six years ago with a piece of land surrounded by blue boarding and I think people feel very annoyed by that.”

The trip to Number 10 followed in the wake of a disappointing meeting between NHS health executives and Arun District Council’s leader, Gillian Brown, director of corporate resources, Nigel Croad, and Littlehampton town mayor Alan Gammon, on Thursday, who asked a series of 10 key questions about the current hospital plans and finances. Health executives in Lewes failed to respond to the questions during a public question time, despite promising the Littlehampton delegation an update on proposed site weeks before the meeting.

Speaking after the meeting with the Primary Care Trust (PCT), councillor Mrs Brown said: “The meeting showed, yet again, the broken promises which the people of Littlehampton have had to contend with for too long.”

During a discussion between campaigners and MPs, which included Worthing West MP Sir Peter Bottomley, at parliamentary office block Portcullis House, delegation members voiced their concerns about the growing population of the town, following the approval of two expansive, housing development sites in Littlehampton, which will bring in thousands of new residents, within the coming years.

Alan Gammon argued it was essential to have a community hospital in the town as the population begins to boom.

Mr Gammon said: “The way the PCT has acted is outrageous. They don’t seem to realise that Littlehampton currently has about 28,000 to 29,000 people living in it, but the catchment area of Littlehampton is in excess of 75,000 people.

“With the planned developments in Courtwick Lane and North Littlehampton having been approved, this is set to increase.

“The NHS has promised us a new health care centre for years but still nothing has happened.

“They have raised our hopes and deflated them many times it makes me wonder.”

Mr Gibb said a new hospital in the area was essential. He argued that an £8million investment in the Littlehampton site, off of Fitzalan Road, would help to relieve the pressure on neighbouring hospitals in Chichester and Worthing, freeing up vital bed space in these two larger, hospitals.

Arun district and West Sussex county councillor Dr James Walsh said: “This hospital would not just free up bed space in the area, but out-patient facilities too, It’s really a question of finding the button to get the finance.

“I think the fact this campaign hasn’t been about one particular political party shows what this means to Littlehampton.

“It’s always been a cross-party approach and we have always been united in our fight for better health care that Littlehampton deserves.”

The old hospital was demolished in 2005 after planning permission was granted for a new 20-bed facility, including treatment rooms offering chiropody, speech and language therapy and physiotherapy, as well as rehabilitation services and x-rays, on the site.

Building work was due to start in 2006 but was delayed after the health trust said it had budget problems.

In 2008, health bosses said “the time was right” to build the new hospital and that it would be up and running by 2010, but this never happened.

In October, the Gazette revealed developers Guildhouse Consortium, which won the competition to build the new hospital in 2005, was suing the NHS for £9million for breach of contract after the project was pulled just weeks before it was due to start.

Representatives of NHS West Sussex are meeting the new Arun chief executive Nigel Lynn next week.

Speaking about Thursday’s meeting in Lewes, a spokeswoman for NHS Sussex said: “We remain committed to resolving this as soon as possible.

“These are complex issues and some are subject to ongoing legal action. In order to give full and accurate answers we had asked colleagues at Arun District Council for questions in advance but unfortunately these were not provided.

“Work is continuing at pace to gather the up-to-date analysis needed to help us make an informed decision on the future of community services in Littlehampton.

“We continue to work with local stakeholders, including local councillors, GPs and patient representatives, and have our next meeting with Arun District Council and Littlehampton Town Council in January. We are very grateful for their participation in this process.”

However, the build remains in a state of limbo, with NHS officials claiming a decision will be made by the end of February.