‘Community hospitals are a lifeline for coastal areas. Labour must protect them’

This summer, campaigners in the Cornish seaside town of St Ives saved their community hospital. Three years after the initial closure, local people raised a million pounds to give the hospital a second lease of life and re-establish key services. This victory means patients can now access preventative care nearby, and it will improve health outcomes for the entire town.

Coastal towns have long relied upon community hospitals to deliver key services. And yet, for 13 years, this model of healthcare has been under attack. Towns dotted along Dorset’s Jurassic Coast – Weymouth, Swanage and Portland – are a case in point.

Community hospitals could help Labour realise its health policy aims

First, take Weymouth Community Hospital situated in my home town. More than a century old, its services have been whittled down year on year, and many remaining services are now delivered by hardworking voluntary organisations. This is largely because of funding cuts and the transfer of staff and resources out of community hospitals and into major hospitals.

As with so many community hospitals, there is a great deal of untapped potential in Weymouth. If properly resourced by the next Labour government, this community hospital could be home to a growing number of nurses, doctors, physiotherapists and mental health specialists embedded in the town. This would create a local hub for preventative services and be a game-changer for the entire community.

The next Labour government is rightly looking to create a more prevention-focused and less centralised health service. Community hospitals can be an engine room for delivering this important reform and should not be forgotten. For Weymouth, delivering all preventative services – such as rehabilitative care, speciality clinics, mental health support and day surgery – in a community setting would certainly help to improve health outcomes and also ease pressures facing the wider NHS.

Labour must protect local healthcare services in coastal towns

Next, consider the idyllic seaside town of Swanage. It is no understatement to say that their community hospital is a cornerstone for the entire town. The hospital has several hundred ‘friends’ donating annually to maintain key services; the town has campaigned relentlessly to save their ambulance car from being cut as well. With next to no support from government, this work is critical. 

When you live in a community that is off the beaten track, your services often feel like a lifeline, and so keeping healthcare in this town really matters. This was made crystal clear to me when my grandfather – who lives in Swanage – collapsed earlier this year. His journey to a major hospital involved an ambulance having to make a lengthy journey via a ferry. This outlay is a regular occurrence when a 999 call is made, which is why protecting local services is so important.

Without a doubt, the ambulance car and hospital remain operational in Swanage because of the unwavering support of the community. Coastal towns depend upon these lifeline services to leap into action during an emergency. So the next Labour government must ensure these services have a secure future. Without them, healthcare will feel increasingly remote for many coastal communities.

Coastal communities like Portland face glaring health inequalities

Finally, take a look at the Isle of Portland’s community hospital. Many services – including the minor injuries unit and X-ray facility – were put on ice during the pandemic due to staffing issues. However, these services are still closed today, and much-needed healthcare professionals have not returned to the hospital.

Portland Community Hospital serves an island that is home to more than 13,000 people, and yet it is simply not firing on all cylinders. Health campaigners are still fighting tooth and nail to re-open services so patients are no longer forced to take a long bus ride to the next nearest hospital. Meanwhile, the entire island has only one GP surgery. As it stands, Portland is not getting the world-class healthcare it deserves.

Why is this so important? Because health inequality is a very real concern across Portland. Life expectancy and healthy life expectancy are lower than the national average; deprivation levels and the prevalence of long-standing health problems are significantly higher.

For an incoming Labour government to tackle this glaring inequality, it is essential that excellent healthcare is available on the island. But if Portland’s hospital continues to be mothballed, then it will be almost impossible to dismantle the root causes of poor health outcomes locally.

The next Labour government must empower community hospitals

Across the whole country, community hospitals achieve so much already, despite the best efforts of this Conservative government. Now they need to be put at the heart of Labour’s plan to rebuild and reform our NHS. Whether delivering preventative healthcare in a community setting, ensuring lifeline services exist for isolated areas or tackling stark health inequalities, community hospitals should be empowered so they can deliver for coastal communities.

Campaigners, fundraisers, patients and voluntary organisations have all gone to extraordinary lengths to protect and champion community hospitals. It’s now time for Labour to pledge its full-throated support for these institutions, which can deliver world-class healthcare on our doorstep.