Sunday, March 8, 2020

Writing to Havering & Barking & Dagenham Councillors to speak at one of their meetings

Dear Councillors

I ask a question of Cllr Athwal, the leader of Redbridge Council on the 26th of March Council meeting, inviting him to speak in favour of a new wing at King George Hospital at a public meeting on the 25th of April. The question is at the end of end of this email.

Usually, because I am a Redbridge resident I would not be allowed to ask a question at any of your public meetings. However I am requesting an exception be made to ask a similar question at a Barking and Dagenham meeting. The campaign aim is to seek a cross borough and cross party consensus that additional capacity needs to be located at King George Hospital in order to relieve the pressure on Queen's Hospital which cannot cope. If you are supportive, I would be grateful if you could write to whoever you think appropriate to allow me to speak.

I say the outcome of the BHRUT clinical strategy review must include a bid for capital funding to build a new wing at King George Hospital. The first wing was built in 2007 for the North East London Treatment Centre. Since then the North East London Population has grown and is set to grow further requiring the opening of a second wing at King George. It is now time to implement a 2017 PWC report commissioned by BHRUT, as part of the clinical strategy review,  for extra beds at a cost of £125M. The report did not state the location of the beds. King George seems the obvious choice with its location by the A12 and the space available both for parking and a new wing. Presumably these were the reasons King George was chosen back in 2007 for extra capacity and they remain the same today.

My question to Councillor Athwal follows:

Dear sir or Madam

 I would like to ask the question below on the 26th of March at full Council

Leader, Would you like to speak at a meeting in this town hall on the 25th of April at 3pm. in favour of a new wing for King George Hospital to comprise of a maternity unit and an ambulatory care day unit along with further emergency inpatient beds to offload some of the pressure on Queen's Hospital which cannot cope?

Regards

Andy Walker
120 Blythswood Road Ilford IG3 8SG
07956 263088