Keep A&E Services in Winchester

The Conservatives have neglected our NHS for too long, and now there are plans to downgrade Winchester's Accident and Emergency Department. 

Instead of moving A&E for Winchester’s residents to Basingstoke, Danny Chambers and the Winchester District Liberal Democrats are calling for a feasibility study into repurposing the soon to be empty Sir John Moore Barracks site on the edge of Winchester. 

The empty barracks will have the advantage of being government owned, saving the taxpayer money from buying new land near Basingstoke.

A new hospital in Winchester, instead of Basingstoke, would significantly reduce travel times for Winchester and Meon Valley residents.

Additionally, Frimley Park Hospital, just over twenty minutes drive from the new Basingstoke hospital site along the M3, has been prioritised for rebuilding. This means two very similar hospitals will be built in such close proximity, making little financial or clinical sense.

Danny says, “I’ve listened closely to Winchester’s residents who are opposed to A&E services being moved nearer to Basingstoke. So many people have told me of their personal stories of when their relatives and children required urgent diagnosis and treatment late at night, where time was of the essence. 

“I have therefore asked hospital chiefs to look at the feasibility of the hospital being built at the vacant army barracks off the Andover Road. This site would deliver significantly better value for money for the taxpayer and reduce travel times to hospital in an emergency for people south of Winchester and the Meon Valley.

"There are other suitable sites that have become available in Winchester that should also be considered, as well as considering substantial investment on the current site of the Royal Hampshire County Hospital in Winchester."

“I am urging everyone to respond to the public consultation before it closes, making it clear you back our call for a new hospital to be built in Winchester."

Danny's response to the consultation can be found here.

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