No beds for the Badger - Shipston’s hospital will not see a return of its beds
SHIPSTON’s Ellen Badger Hospital will not be getting any of its beds back, it was announced this morning (Thursday).
The hospital’s 16 beds were moved to Leamington in January 2022 by South Warwickshire University NHS Foundation Trust while the site was redeveloped - a project that was originally meant to include a new hospital with beds, but has since been downgraded to a wellbeing centre.
Despite protests about the downgrade and the lack of beds at the new Ellen Badger, a secretive bed review for south Warwickshire and money being given by the Friends of the Ellen Badger Hospital towards the project, the NHS Coventry and Warwickshire Integrated Care Board (ICB) announced that the 35 community rehabilitation beds in south Warwickshire will be permanently located at Leamington Hospital and Stratford Hospital.
The decision was made at an ICB Board meeting yesterday (Wednesday) following a six-week consultation which did include an option for up to 12 beds to be moved into an old building on the Ellen Badger site.
The ICB said locating the beds at two sites will see a continuation of the current arrangements. It also attempted to appease Shiptson residents, who were concerned health services in rural areas were being overlooked in favour of more urban areas, by saying the ICB recognised “there is need for a wider consideration of health services for our rural communities”.
It added “the board also agreed to adopt a whole system approach to engagement with our communities, prioritising rural communities initially, aligned with the Neighbourhood Health Guidelines 2025/26, using Shipston and surrounding areas as a blueprint for future ICS engagement”.
In English, that means talking to the Shipston community about their health service needs and trying to plug the gaps.
Danielle Oum, chair of NHS Coventry and Warwickshire ICB, said: “The decision to permanently locate community rehabilitation beds in south Warwickshire across two sites will mean care is close to the majority of patients, whilst also ensuring value for money in our services.
“Since the beds were temporarily relocated in January 2022, we have closely monitored the impact on patients and we know this model works, so we are confident this decision is the right one for south Warwickshire.
“I’d like to thank everyone who participated in the consultation process and assure them we have heard their concerns.
“We recognise there was significant public support for the three site model, especially in Shipston. However, as a board we believe that the two site option provides high-quality care while being more affordable, focuses on the places with the most patients needing rehabilitation, and supports how our staff currently work across south Warwickshire.
“Although we will no longer be delivering community bedded rehabilitation from the Ellen Badger site, it is important that we acknowledge the issues identified through the consultation process in how we support rural communities’ access to health and care services.
“To address this, the ICB board has committed to ongoing engagement with rural communities to identify gaps in provision and develop services that meet the needs of people living in these areas.”
Reaction to follow.
