HUGE WIN as St Helier A&E upgrade approved
St Helier Hospital in Carshalton has received £57 million in funding to extend and upgrade the hospital's emergency department.
It marks the end of a long campaign for an upgrade and extension spearheaded by the local Liberal Democrats, and comes after the latest Care Quality Commission report rated the Hospital’s emergency department as “requires improvement”. Recent NHS statistics place Epsom and St Helier Hospital as one of the worst trusts for corridor care.
Bobby Dean MP has been leading the campaign for an extension to St Helier’s A&E, bringing together local residents and pressing the Government to act. His campaign included a petition signed by more than 2,500 people, a public rally, a parliamentary debate, and extensive engagement with ministers and NHS bosses to highlight the urgent need for investment in the hospital.
Bobby Dean, MP for Carshalton and Wallington, said:
“This is great news for our hospital. Finally we have a big injection of money to upgrade A&E, which will go a long way to ending corridor care.
“Over the past months, I have heard many heartbreaking stories from people sharing their anger and embarrassment at being treated publicly in hospital corridors. St Helier Hospital has been overwhelmed for far too long.
“Our campaign to extend St Helier’s A&E has had huge engagement and support. Thanks to everyone who has been involved. I am going to keep the pressure on to make sure that we see spades in the ground as quickly as possible, and will keep people updated every step of the way.”
Luke Taylor, MP for Sutton and Cheam, said:
"This is amazing news for Sutton residents - patients stuck in corridors at St Helier is a scandal that has dragged on for far too long, putting patients and staff at risk, this funding should end that misery.
"This win is years in the making, and I'm proud that the Lib Dems led the campaign every step of the way. Working together with local people, we have demanded better care at St Helier for decades. Myself, Helen Maguire and Bobby Dean, as well as our predecessors Paul Burstow and Tom Brake, took that fight to Parliament over and over again to get the Government to sit up and take notice. Today, they finally did.
"Generations of local people have been born at St Helier, raised in its catchment area, and spent the most important moments of their lives there. They deserve not just to feel secure in the knowledge that it offers great care, but also to feel pride in the building and the commitment to care it represents. In recent years that has sadly not been the case. Now we can begin to restore that security, and that pride.
“I will work with my colleagues to make sure we see spades in the ground quickly- so that better quality emergency care is available to Sutton residents as soon as possible.”
“After being let down by Conservative MPs in Sutton and a Conservative Government in Westminster, we’re proud that the Liberal Democrat MPs are able to deliver these improvements for local people.”
Helen Maguire, MP for Epsom and Ewell, said:
"Today began with the release of deeply troubling data – new NHS figures showing that nearly 3,000 patients a day are being treated in corridors across England. But I am delighted that, with this investment, St Helier will hopefully no longer be a fixture in those statistics.
“I have been a passionate advocate for St Helier since before I was even elected - I raised it in my maiden speech, and I abseiled down the building to raise funds that, frankly, the hospital should never have needed to rely on in the first place. I have raised the state of it in Parliament repeatedly, because our constituents deserve to be treated with dignity when receiving healthcare. This funding is long overdue and very welcome.”
Cllr Barry Lewis, Leader of Sutton Council, said:
“I'm absolutely delighted to hear this news - this is the win that the people of Sutton have been waiting for. Now, finally, St Helier will get the funding it needs to offer the very best emergency care.
"Just last month the Liberal Democrats won a historic 51 councillors in Sutton on a manifesto that pledged to fight for this funding. Well, I'm proud to say, we have delivered on that pledge in our first 35 days.
"But the fight for this result has been raging on for a lot longer than that. I'm proud of the work of so many Lib Dem councillors in Sutton, past and present, who have made sure local voices have been heard time and time again on this issue.
"There's still more to do - including pushing for much quicker delivery of the new hospital in Sutton we were promised by the last government. But today's news has proved that the Lib Dems will always deliver for people in our borough, and we will keep pushing for the best"