Smithy Cottage Main Street East YO25 9DU

16 January 2017

East Riding of Yorkshire Clinical Commissioning Group- Consultation on Urgent Care Services

Dear Chief Officer

I write on behalf of Kirkburn Parish Council.

At a recent Parish Council meeting we discussed your Consultation on Urgent Care Services and what is in effect, by the structuring of the questions in your consultation questionnaire, your proposed closure of Alfred Bean Hospital's minor injuries unit (MIU). All the Parish Council members expressed their concern at this proposed closure of the MIU when there is a demonstrative need for the MIU to remain open.

The Parish of Kirkburn incorporates . Within Kelleythorpe is an old MOD site (RAF Driffield/Alamein Barracks) which, under the recently approved Local Plan for the Council (ERYC) area, is to be the location of a major 500 home development. Planning applications are expected to be submitted shortly. The residents of this new development will require local healthcare provision, including minor injuries services. This will also apply to construction workers employed on the development during the construction phase.

In addition to this proposed development we understand that a significant amount of new housing will also be constructed in Driffield as well.

Have you taken into account the requirements of ERYC’s Local Plan in respect for Driffield and the surrounding area when devising your strategy for Urgent Care Services? The Department of Health provides guidance for health organisations with respect to planning requirements in the addendum to its Health Building Note 00-08 (see https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/the-efficient-management-of-healthcare- estates-and-facilities-health-building-note-00-08 ) so presumably the CCG will have taken the Local Plan and this guidance into account. If not your decision making process cannot be seen to be robust.

The industrial estate at Kelleythorpe also continues to be developed and is now home to many large employers, with more expected as there are still several acres of land designated for industrial use and currently yet to be developed. Employers, and their employees, on this large industrial estate utilise the current minor injuries unit as their first port of call during their hours of work.

Also located in Kelleythorpe are Driffield Show Ground, home to an increasing number of major events since the opening of its Rix Pavilion in 2015, and Driffield Rugby Club. Both organisations and their users/guests require access to minor injuries services.

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There has probably never been a time when the MIU is likely to be required more as the local population expands. The NHS SHAPE tool https://shape.phe.org.uk/ is intended to help enable the modelling of healthcare provision requirements. When we wrote to the CCG in July 2016 they confirmed that they have not utilised this NHS tool, provided by Public Health , as part of their decision making process. If you have continued with your decision making process without utilising this NHS tool, how are you able to evidence that your decision making is not flawed and the urgent care service provision you are proposing is sufficient going forward?

The distances to your proposed Urgent Care centres in , and from our parish are not insignificant and will take some time to reach even when a patient has access to transport. There is no public transport available for the residents of our parish to reach the towns of Beverley and Goole and extremely limited public transport for reaching Bridlington. This is due to be reduced even further when the proposed cuts to local bus services occur in April 2017. Extending journey times for patients is surely not conducive for improving health outcomes.

In summary it is imperative that the Minor Injuries Unit in Driffield remains open for the residents of our parish.

Yours sincerely

Philip Ashcroft CEng CEnv MIMechE MIET Chair and Acting Clerk Kirkburn Parish Council

CC: Sir Greg Knight ERYC - East Riding of Yorkshire Council’s Health, Care and Wellbeing Overview and Scrutiny Sub-Committee

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