Shropshire Star

No confidence vote call on management of Shropshire hospitals trust and Future Fit

The leader of Telford & Wrekin Council’s Conservative group is to put forward a motion of no confidence in a health trust's management and the Future Fit process.

Published
Last updated
Councillor Andrew Eade, left, has called on hospital trust CEO Simon Wright to resign

Councillor Andrew Eade also called on Simon Wright, the boss of Shropshire’s two main hospitals, to resign.

He said he will lodge the motion, which involves Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital NHS Trust (Sath), at this week’s meeting of the full council on Thursday.

Councillor Eade said: “Clearly our doctors, nurses and medical staff have been badly let down by management and leadership which are responsible for our hospital being placed into special measures following an unprecedented third warning from the CQC.

“We have seen a succession of poor decisions and mistakes over the past three years which have also led to our A&E services facing an unacceptable partial closure.

“It is now time for urgent changes in the trust’s top management who have so badly failed us including the CEO Simon Wright who should now stand down as an essential part of the process of rectifying the problems facing the trust.”

He is also calling for a third option to be included as part of the Future Fit process.

Councillor Eade said: “We are calling for the proposed reconfiguration of our hospitals to be put on hold while a third option of hospital services located between Telford and Shrewsbury can be properly considered.”

See also:

He said the call has been made in the wake of repeated warnings being given to Sath by the Care Quality Commission.

Safety concerns were raised after inspections took place at Sath in August and urgent action was taken by the CQC, ahead of the trust being placed into special measures.

Mr Wright said: “The health system in Shropshire and Telford & Wrekin, and the hospitals at their heart, face challenges that have been created over a long period during which investment in services and buildings have not kept up with patient demand.

“Future Fit, led by the commissioners, and the £312m investment associated with it, offers the best opportunity in a generation to fix these problems and provide the healthcare that people of the county deserve.

“There have been nine chief executives – including three interims and one acting up – at Sath in 19 years, and that lack of continuity in leadership has contributed to the challenges that the trust now faces.

“If our healthcare system is to move forward, stability is absolutely essential. Now is the time for the community to rally around the staff and for everyone to work together to improve and transform health services.”

Mr Wright held briefings with staff yesterday about the recent events.

He told them: "I am going to work with you for the rest of my career. I'm not going to run and I'm not going to leave. This is about seeing this through together."