Our Response to Government Decision to End Local Healthwatch Services

Healthwatch West Berkshire have expressed serious concern over the Government’s decision as part of the NHS 10-year plan and following on from the Penny Dash report, to stop commissioning local Healthwatch services subject to new legislation being passed and move them ‘in-house’. It warns this change will undermine the independence and effectiveness of public voice in health and social care. 

“The Government’s decision is deeply concerning and overlooks the real, tangible difference local Healthwatch teams make in their communities,” said Jamie Evans, Area Director for Berkshire West. “Healthwatch plays a vital role in ensuring that the views of the public shape the health and care services they need. When services engage people in design and review, the benefits are clear. By closing Healthwatch, communities will lose a service that provides independent advice, listens to local people, amplifies their voices, and drives meaningful change in health and care services.” 

Healthwatch West Berkshire is rooted in the needs and experiences of the people it serves. Local Healthwatch teams shine a light on what’s working — and more importantly, what isn’t — and provide local evidence and patient insight to support their calls for improvement where it’s needed most. 

To end these services is to strip away one of the few truly independent channels people have that influence how their care is delivered. The current Healthwatch delivery structure provides an established and effective nationwide network of local Healthwatch groups and elevates community voices. It is hard to understand the reasoning behind dismantling something that will eventually need to be rebuilt and we question the rationale for shifting and dividing responsibility for health and social care feedback between Integrated Care Boards and local authorities. This risks undermining independent feedback gathering and weakening the public voice in health and care services.

We urge the Government to urgently rethink this very important decision that will have an adverse impact on the local, independent voice.