Future Fit consultation events cancelled after concerns for safety of staff

The first event was held in Park Lane Community Centre on Tuesday but there was disruption involving protesters and staff inside and the protesters were asked to leave.

A later event planned for Stirchley was also cancelled.

But protest group Shropshire Telford and Wrekin Defend Our NHS insisted that they were the ones shouted at.

Simon Freeman, head of Shropshire Clinical Commissioning Group, asked the protestors to let the staff do their job.

He said: "We appreciate how much people care for and are passionate about the NHS.

"In many respects the NHS depends on those people being passionate but all I would say is please acknowledge the NHS clinical health exert managers and the staff that work on it are just as passionate as the protestors are about the future.

"All we're saying is, let the NHS staff do their job.

"The staff felt unable to continue the session so they didn't continue.

"The police are aware but they're not going to take it any further.

"We've spent a lot of time, money and preparation putting these events together and this isn't about Defend Our NHS, this is about ordinary people in the county and Powys finding out about the proposals and the implications."

Gill George, chairwoman of Shropshire, Telford and Wrekin Defend Our NHS, said Future Fit is randomly changing the times and locations of pop-ups without notifying the public.

Opposed

She said: "Defend Our NHS is completely opposed to intimidation, and of course we did not and would not intimidate pop-up staff. We also condemn intimidation of people campaigning against Future Fit by pop-up staff.

"It’s also unsatisfactory that the pop-up stalls have been outsourced to an external company, and that the company is employing staff who have plainly had minimal training and who acknowledge that they know nothing at all about Future Fit.

"It’s unfair to the public, but it’s unfair to staff members as well – because members of the public will obviously be asking difficult questions that they are unable to answer. It must be very stressful for staff.

"On Tuesday morning, our campaigners were leafleting in the centre at Woodside. One of them asked pop-up staff why they kept not turning up, and suggested this was misleading the public.

"Staff members became angry at being asked about this.

"Our campaigners were in the centre with the permission of the centre receptionist. They left amicably as soon as the centre manager asked them to. As it happens I was on the phone to our campaigner when alleged intimidation took place.

"What I heard was a pop-up staff member who had followed a campaigner out of the building; the staff member then – with no provocation – approached the campaigner and shouted at her loudly and angrily.

"The staff member’s behaviour was unacceptable. And yes, a community police officer did attend, and was completely untroubled.

"What we have here is not campaigners who are being intimidating. We have a consultation exercise that’s as much of a shambles as the rest of Future Fit. Responsibility lies with Future Fit leaders."

After numerous delays to the consultation it finally got under way last week, and will now run until September.

In total there will be about 70 pop-up events in the county, and eight marketplace events where the public can chat with clinicians and health bosses regarding the consultation and Future Fit.

There will be an event in Telford later today and in Shrewsbury tomorrow.