25/12 Cash injection for four community hospitals

Cash injection for four community hospitals

- Multi-million pound funding will deliver thousands more minor ops and
medical checks closer to patients' homes -
- 'Under threat' community hospitals set for major overhaul -
- Deal signed to drive forward Government's community hospital plans -

Health Minister Lord Warner today announced £44.5 million in funding
for four new community hospitals and health centres. The facilities are
the first to be funded from a £750 million fund for new community
hospitals and services to provide NHS patients with minor operations,
medical tests and follow-up care outside of large hospitals.

The state-of-the-art community hospitals and services in Sunderland,
Bristol, Gosport and Minehead will offer speedy access to medical checks,
ranging from hearing tests to endoscopies, as well as day surgery and
urgent care units.

The funding will give Gosport War Memorial Hospital a major face-lift
under a £6.1 million refurbishment, while £26 million for a new Minehead
Community Hospital will replace the town's old hospital in Somerset.

In total, it is expected that the new facilities will perform around
25,000 medical tests, treat 30,000 minor injuries and handle 20,000
outpatient appointments every year in a major shift of care into community
settings.

Health Minister Lord Warner said:

"A modern health service needs a significant amount of care provided in
state-of-the-art community hospitals. This model of care suits peoples'
daily lives and will help many patients' maintain their independence."

"Today's funding underlines our commitment to the future of community
hospitals and shows our desire to replace outdated and unsuitable
buildings with modern facilities fit for the future."

"These new NHS facilities will turn our white paper proposals for more
care closer to home into reality for thousands of patients. This is
just the first group of new hospitals and there will be more throughout
2007 as we invest £750 million in similar schemes over the next five
years."

Barbara Moore, chief executive of the Community Hospitals Association,
said:
"We are delighted to hear news of the first communities to benefit from
funding to modernise and extend the services available from upgraded or
new community hospitals. Many people will be very relieved that the
future of their community facilities is now secured. We look forward to
seeing this repeated in many other areas."

The four community facilities receiving funding are:

- Washington Primary Care Centre, Sunderland - a new £8.9 million
health centre conveniently located in a shopping centre. Opening in 2008,
the centre will provide a walk-in urgent care and illness unit,
diagnostic and treatment services, kidney dialysis and substance misuse service.
- Gosport War Memorial Hospital, Hampshire - a £6.1 million
refurbishment of the existing community hospital. The investment will deliver six
additional consulting suites, an endoscopy clinic, additional
diagnostic imaging facilities, and 10 rehabilitation beds. Services will open
from 2007.
- Yate Health and Children's Integrated Services Centre, Bristol - a
new £9 million health centre (£5 million provided by the department)
offering outpatient and diagnostic services, an urgent care service, 10 GPs
and community audiology, midwifery, baby clinics. The centre is
expected to open in late 2008.
- Minehead Community Hospital - a major £26 million (£24.5 provided by
the department) redevelopment of the outdated community hospital into a
modern health, leisure and educational park called 'New Horizons'. The
20 bed hospital will include a new diagnostic centre and day theatre,
as well as new dental facilities and urgent care unit. Set to be fully
operational from late 2009.

In July, the department invited Primary Care Trusts (PCTs) to bid for
capital funding to build a network of community hospitals, health
centres and polyclinics. These first four successful bids represent just
those PCTs with the most advanced plans. A further round of proposals is
expected from PCTs in January.

The department also announced today that it has completed a deal to
become sole owner of Partnerships for Health (PfH), the public private
partnership set up to encourage investment in GP premises and health
centres.

The deal will assist the implementation of the community hospital
programme. NHS patients will benefit from a more focused delivery of the
community hospital programme, as the department will be able to use the
skills within PfH to support community ventures.

Lord Warner continued:

"Gaining sole ownership of Partnerships for Health is good news for
patients and the NHS in the long term. This deal gives us access to the
skilled and experienced people needed to take forward our plans for a new
generation of NHS community hospitals.

"Patients will benefit from the continued delivery of these community
hospitals, while the deal will also help ensure that the new PCTs can
hit the ground running as they take forward the ongoing NHS LIFT
programme."

James Stewart, Chief Executive of Partnerships UK said:

"Partnerships UK helped develop a major new investment programme for
the health sector. With the primary health schemes delivered and the
market having reached a high level of sophistication and maturity, the time
is now right for us to recycle our skills and resources in other
sectors.

"This has been a highly successful programme which will leave a lasting
impression on the health sector and the patients that use its
facilities right across the country."

In addition to the existing NHS community hospital estate, there are
now 654 one-stop health centres, offering GPs and one or more extended
primary care service, such as dentistry, physiotherapy, health visitors,
pharmacy, optometry, or social work, have opened since 2000, beating
the NHS Plan target of 625 new centres by December 2006.

14/08 Coastguard rescue team assist police in recovery of badly injured male off beach

Coastguard rescue team assist police in recovery of badly injured male off beach

At ten minutes to nine 13 Aug Swansea Coastguard received a
request for assistance from Avon and Somerset police in the recovery of a
badly injured male off the beach at Helwell Bay, Watchet.

It would appear that the man was found by three fishermen in a bad way
on the beach six feet from the water's edge with an incoming tide.

Swansea Coastguard called out the Watchet Coastguard rescue team,
requested the launch of the Minehead RNLI inshore lifeboat, and scrambled
the RAF rescue helicopter 'R169' from Chivenor.

The man who is 38 years of age, was found by the fishermen who managed
to get him away from the water's edge before calling for help from the
police.

The Coastguard despatched the Watchet Coastguard rescue team to the
scene to assist the other emergency services.

The helicopter evacuated the man quickly to North Devon District
Hospital into the care of the medical authorities.

Andrew Christopher, Watch Assistant, Swansea Coastguard said:

"We are pleased that we were able to assist our colleagues in Avon and
Somerset Police in the execution of this incident.

This man is very lucky that the three fishermen found him when they
did. The tide was rising and it would have soon covered him. It is unknown
how he sustained the injuries he has, but he is now being treated for
those injuries in hospital."

08/08 New pony centre to support preservation of Exmoor ponies

New pony centre to support preservation of Exmoor ponies

What could be more symbolic of Exmoor than an Exmoor pony? Yet,
surprisingly enough, these ponies are actually classified as 'endangered' by
the Rare Breeds Survival Trust with only 390 breeding females left in
the UK. Now, thanks to support of a Rural Enterprise Grant (RES),
administered locally by the South West Rural Development Service, a new Exmoor
Pony Centre has been created at Ashwick, near Dulverton.

The new Centre will give an extra dimension to the work done by the
Moorland Mousie Trust, a charity whose purpose is to promote the Exmoor
Pony. Even though the pony is a strong heritage symbol of the Exmoor
area, there were no facilities available for visitors and tourists to look
at, handle and learn about the breed. The Trust secured the lease on a
redundant farm building together with just under 7Ha of land with a
further 56Ha of moorland made available by the Exmoor National Park, but
needed help with the development costs for the Centre.

The RES grant supported the provision of a covered, all weather
training and riding surface, a raised viewing gallery for spectators and
visitors for lectures and demonstrations, facilities for pony care,
saddlery, storage of feed and bedding, an office space for administration of
the charity's work and a trekking operation.

Valerie Sherwin, Chief Executive of the Exmoor Pony Centre, said: "I
have this absolute passion for Exmoor ponies and the development of the
Centre means that visitors can find out more about the breed, see them,
and trek on Exmoor on them to see other ponies in the wild. It means
there are facilities for viewing, handling and training the ponies for a
useful life - an important part of the Moorland Mousie Trust's work.

"Exmoor ponies are a fantastic breed, as despite being relatively small
they were used extensively by Exmoor farmers before mechanization, for
pulling carts and ploughs, and for transport. We're looking forward to
introducing visitors to the delights of this special breed."

Exmoor pones are in decline, and the Moorland Mousie Trust takes
surplus foals from the moor at weaning, handling them, and then placing them
in permanent or foster homes until they are old enough to be trained as
riding ponies. Since the Trust was formed in 2000, 140 Exmoor ponies
have been successfully fostered. Some of the ponies are used to
establish herds of conservation grazers in a wide range of reserves and country
parks throughout Britain. There is currently a waiting list for them!

Helen Merchant, RDS adviser said: "This is great news for Exmoor as the
initiative will create two full time jobs, plus seasonal positions
within this very rural area. The new Exmoor Pony Centre should attract pony
enthusiasts to the area and will be a wonderful window for the work of
the charity. The fact that there is a waiting list for ponies as
conservation grazers means that the work of the charity is actually
supporting conservation measures throughout the South West and beyond. Our
support means they can continue to progress in developing part of Exmoor's
unique heritage."

OPEN DAY AT THE EXMOOR PONY CENTRE -
AN OPPORTUNITY TO VIEW THE FACILITIES AND THE PONIES!
Sunday 20 August - 09.30am - 04.30pm. Live demonstrations with ponies
10am, 12noon, 2pm and 4pm. For more details public can ring 01398
323093.