After 14 years of neglect and mismanagement, the NHS we inherited from the Conservatives is broken. I understand what people are going through, my family and I have also been affected by the shortcomings of decent healthcare in our community.
I was elected in July 2024 as the Member of Parliament for Hemel Hempstead. I stood on a commitment to improve local healthcare. Below, you will find detailed information about what I have done locally on healthcare, what my position is on major healthcare issues, and what the government nationally has done and committed to improve health in our area.
My aspiration for a Community Hospital in Hemel:
What is the new Health Campus and how does this link to a Community Hospital?
There is a partnership, including the NHS trust, Integrated Care Board, and Dacorum Borough Council, to develop a new Health Campus on the Market Square. The Health Campus aims to provide a space for the delivery of NHS services within more modern, fit for purpose premises at the heart of Hemel Hempstead town centre. The proposed Campus is intended to improve the health and wellbeing of residents within the Dacorum area, and surrounding villages. I support this project, subject to it providing an ambitious range of services, as a ‘Community Hospital’.
Why do I support the project in principle?
Hemel Hempstead Hospital is not fit for 21st century healthcare. The buildings are in disrepair, it is poorly located, there is poor access for patients and staff, and the services currently don’t reflect need.
It will provide purpose-built premises offering services tailored to meet the healthcare needs of our community. It’s much easier to start from the beginning than retrofit.
The Market Square is central, making it easily accessible by public transport for most people in Hemel the flat nature of the site will also benefit those with physical disabilities. It will also likely drive-up footfall to our town centre.
It is the best feasible and realistic option. It is based in a proper business case with the proper assessments done.
It will address healthcare needs. The Hemel Health Campus, which I am pushing to function as a Community Hospital, is a crucial development to meet the growing healthcare demands of the region. With an increasing population and an aging demographic, the need for modern, accessible, and high-quality healthcare services is more urgent than ever. The campus aims to provide proper medical facilities, reducing pressure on existing hospitals and ensuring timely patient care.
The new health campus is designed to enhance accessibility for patients and staff. Its strategic location and improved transport links will ensure ease of access, minimising travel times and increasing efficiency in healthcare delivery. A modernized healthcare environment will also improve patient outcomes and staff satisfaction.
There are economic and community benefits. Contrary to some myths on social media, there is no way the current site will be closed before the new facility is opened. Beyond healthcare, the campus is a significant economic catalyst. It will create jobs, stimulate local businesses, and attract investment in the area.
What services am I pushing for at Hemel Health Campus?
The Hemel Health Campus is not yet at the stage where the services have been set out. However, I am working to ensure these are as ambitious as possible. The services I am pushing for include:
Diagnostic services (e.g. scans and x-rays, blood tests)
24/7 triage with proper out of hours support for residents without the need to go to Watford in most cases.
Treatment for minor procedures (lumps, bumps, hernia, cataracts, bunions)
Mental health and wellbeing services
Treatment for vulnerable patients with conditions such as Parkinson’s or dementia
Patient transfer services
Full rehabilitation and step-down wards - getting residents back into the community and their support networks as soon as possible.
Who holds the power to make the new Health Campus happen?
Integrated Care Board: their role is to act as the strategic planning authority for the NHS in Hertfordshire and West Essex. They hold the budget for the local health system and are responsible to government to make sure that health services are of a good standard in the area. The ICB discharges its responsibility by commissioning a range of services from various providers.
Dacorum Borough Council: as the local authority DBC have a wide remit encompassing safeguarding the population, as well as planning and development, including the regeneration of the town, housing, environment, and more. The Market Square is in DBC’s portfolio.
West Herts NHS Trust: the Trust is responsible for the provision of acute services; they are also the current service provider and landlord of Hemel Hospital. The proposed health campus is linked with the future of Hemel Hospital, they therefore have a major stake.
What is my role as MP?
The budget and the decision-making power are not held by me as the local MP. My role is to hold decision makers to account, to make sure you as residents are getting the best deal. To achieve this, I attend regular meetings with stakeholders to make sure they meet set deadlines and fulfil their commitments. I also discuss progress of the project with Ministers and in Parliament.
What have and am I doing to support the project?
Met with the Chair and CEO of West Hertfordshire Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust to understand more about the existing services available at Hemel hospital and discuss future provision of healthcare in Hemel Hempstead.
Explained the healthcare situation in Hemel to our Health Secretary, Wes Streeting.
Engaged with the Government on the New Hospitals Programme changes.
Raised the need for a Community Hospital in Hemel Hempstead in Parliament.
Met with Zubir Ahmed, Parliamentary Private Secretary to Health Secretary Wes Streeting, to discuss the issues surrounding the future of our hospital.
I am continuing to work with local health leaders to inform the public of developments.
I am in the process of arranging to meet with the newly appointed Project Manager for the Health Campus Sheena Phillips.
I held a meeting with the Health Minister, Karin Smyth, to discuss local healthcare needs and relay the importance of this project advancing at pace and with the most services possible She has asked to be kept updated.
The impact on neighbourhood-based care:
This Labour government is expanding neighbourhood-based healthcare with:
Neighbourhood Health Centres – Bringing GPs, nurses, and physiotherapists under one roof.
Family Doctor Model – Ensuring patients see the same GP for continuity of care.
Community Care Expansion – More procedures in local hubs to ease hospital pressures.
£26 Billion NHS Investment – Funding daily operations and modernising infrastructure.
Public Consultation – Shaping a 10-year NHS Health Plan.
These plans aim to create a more accessible, localised NHS. The Hemel Health Campus aligns with this Labour government’s vision for neighbourhood-based healthcare by bringing essential NHS services closer to the community in a modern, accessible facility. The campus aims to replace outdated hospital infrastructure with purpose-built, patient-centred healthcare services, reducing pressure on overstretched hospitals like Watford General.
While the Integrated Care Board, West Herts NHS Trust, and Dacorum Borough Council hold decision-making power, I am actively working to ensure the project delivers the best possible healthcare for the community.
I am confident that this project reflects Labour’s commitment to integrated, localised healthcare. If it is delivered in the most ambitious way possible, it will help in ensuring residents can access diagnostic services, minor procedures, mental health support, rehabilitation, and 24/7 triage without unnecessary travel. By centralising care in a well-connected, accessible location, the campus also supports economic regeneration, creating jobs and increasing footfall in the town centre.
Why is this the best option?
I support building the Health Campus on the Market Square site because it is the best outcome for the residents of Hemel Hempstead. It is the only offer available and represents the largest investment into healthcare in Hemel Hempstead for over fourteen years. As an MP it is my duty to be honest and transparent about what is possible and what is not.
I will never mislead the community, by offering false hope of resources that are not available. My priority is to advocate for our community and deliver improved Healthcare to Hemel Hempstead as soon as possible. We have waited 14 years for a commitment to provide improved health services in Hemel Hempstead.
Redevelopment of Watford General Hospital (WGH):
The redevelopment of Watford General Hospital (WGH) is part of the New Hospital Programme (NHP), crucial for securing funding to build a new, state-of-the-art facility. Delaying or starting over with this project could push healthcare improvements for Hemel Hempstead back by at least 10 years.
The Hemel Health Campus will provide essential local services like diagnostics, triage, and minor procedures, easing pressure on WGH. Additionally, the relocation of the Mount Vernon Cancer Centre to Watford is a key opportunity to enhance cancer care for over 2 million people. Without the WGH redevelopment, this relocation could be jeopardised.
The delay to the NHP is regrettable, but the Tories did not provide funding for the whole programme beyond March this year. As a result, we have had no choice but to delay.
Even with that delay, it is not feasible to build an alternative hospital offering the same services as Watford in a shorter timeframe, as some have suggested.
I know that some residents have had a frustrating experience at the current hospital at Watford – my own family included. But the re-developed state-of-the-art hospital will hugely improve healthcare for residents in Hemel and West Herts.
By supporting both the WGH redevelopment and Hemel’s Health Campus, I aim to ensure modern, accessible healthcare for residents across the region.
Improving local dental services:
I know many Hemel people are struggling to get an appointment with an NHS dentist (me included). Only 1 in 20 in our area are accepting new patients.
My actions locally:
Conducted a survey to assess the scale of the problem, so it can be reported to the Minister.
Raised dentistry in Parliament via Written Parliamentary Questions
Engaged with Wes Streeting during Health Questions, where he set out talking to the British Dental Association and working within the department and across the sector to get the 700,000 extra appointments we promised up and running as a matter of urgency.
Other things I’ve done locally:
I met with local GPs as well as visited practice staff at Parkwood Drive Surgery to discuss how I can best support them with improvements to address the ongoing issues in appointment availability.
I also visited Bennetts End Surgery again (having visited it with Health Secretary Wes Streeting previously) and discussed the New Deal with GPs as well as the progress that the surgery is making to improve the booking service for patients.
I attended a visit with the leadership team of The Hospice of St Francis at the Highfield charity shop to discuss the Government's largest investment in hospices in a generation, with a boost of £121,619 for upgrades and refurbishment of facilities, ensuring they can continue to provide the highest quality end-of-life care for their patients.
I have visited Right at Home Care home in Apsley, to discuss the importance of care in our community
I spent time with staff at the Mind Herts Haven Cafe, which provides a free drop-in space for young people to discuss their concerns and receive practical help for mental health issues without needing a referral
I Attended St Johns Ambulance #SaveALifeSeptember event to show my support and learning lifesaving skills in the process.
I spent time with staff at Fernville Pharmacy to see the vital work they're doing to support our local community as well as the challenges they're facing. I also visited Grovehill and Woodhall Pharmacy who serve around 15,000 residents and have 13 staff that provide vital medicines and support to the community.
What has Labour done on healthcare nationally since being elected?
In addition to my work locally, I also wanted to provide you with an update to the changes that Labour are making nationally to revitalise the NHS.
Action since July 2024:
We have stuck to our word and delivered our first step of two million more appointments a year to cut NHS waiting lists - and we've done it seven months early.
Waiting lists have fallen by 193,000 since we took office, meaning extra appointments delivered for chemotherapy, radiotherapy, endoscopy, and diagnostic tests.
Ended junior doctors strikes so staff were on front line not picket line this Winter
Cut red tape to recruit 1,000 more GPs.
The biggest conversation in NHS history as we build toward our 10 Year Plan – more than a million people have visited the website, and thousands have taken part in events ensuring the voice of patients will be at the heart of reform.
Our 10 Year Health Plan will transform the NHS to make it fit for the future, and it will have patients’ and staff’s fingerprints all over it.
Smoking bill introduced to protect children and most vulnerable Mental Health Bill going through Parliament
A ban on junk food advertising targeted at children in the pipeline
Biggest investment into hospices in a generation ensuring that hospices can continue to deliver the highest quality end of life care possible for their patients, families, and loved ones.
New deal for GPs will fix the front door of the NHS. The first step to fixing the front door to the NHS and ending the 8am scramble. That means online booking for patients, bringing back the family doctor relationship and cutting red tape.
Social Care Commission led by Whitehall do-er Baroness Louise Casey
Biggest increase to Carers Allowance in decades
£86m boost to Disabled Facilities Grant to provide older and disabled people with the home adaptations they need to lead happy, independent and dignified lives in their own homes.
Legislated for first ever fair pay agreement for social care staff. • Launched elective reform plan tackling the 7.5million strong waiting list
£126m in early years support to be able to give children the best start in life
Confirmed that all projects in the New Hospital Programme will be built, committing the money and timetable the last government failed to deliver.
£200 million national funding boost to the Public Health Grant – the biggest real-terms increase after nearly a decade of reduced spending under the Conservatives.
World leading AI trial to tackle breast cancer. Nearly 700,000 women across the country will take part in a world-leading trial to test how AI tools can be used to catch breast cancer cases earlier.
Dental patients to benefit from 700,000 extra urgent appointments. We’re rolling out 700,000 extra urgent NHS dental appointments across the country to end the misery faced by hundreds of thousands of people unable to get urgent dental care.
Crack teams of doctors sent to areas of highest economic inactivity, busting the backlog and getting patients off waiting lists at twice the speed.
Supervised toothbrushing scheme launched for children to prevent tooth decay that will reach up to 600,000 children in the most deprived areas.
World’s largest quango, NHS England, to be scrapped under reforms to put patients first.
Dentistry:
Labour will tackle the crisis in children’s dentistry by making sure our children get the care they need with 100,000 extra dentist appointments paid for by The NHS dental contract is not fit for purpose.
Labour is working with dentists and others from across the sector to reform the dental contract and rebuild NHS dentistry. Because of the damning record of the Conservative Government, around 13 million people in England have unmet need for dentistry and after 14 years of Tory Government, rotting teeth are the most common reason for children aged between five and nine being admitted to hospital. Alongside contract reform we need urgent action.
That is why the Government are delivering on our manifesto commitment to roll out 700,000 extra urgent appointments across the country.
Earlier this month, Labour also launched a supervised toothbrushing programme for children to prevent tooth decay - that will reach up to 600,000 children in the most deprived areas.
Our Golden Hello scheme will provide incentives to encourage young dentists to areas most in need.
Slashing waiting times:
Already cut NHS wait times by nearly 200,000 nationally.
This Government has delivered 2 million extra appointments, just like we promised, and have done so 7 months early. Thanks to this action waiting lists have fallen for 5 months in a row.
With the combination of investment and reform, Labour has committed to turn the NHS around and cut waiting times from 18 months to 18 weeks.
The budget delivered funding to reduce waiting times by supporting the NHS to deliver an extra 40,000 elective appointments a week and AI-enabled scanners promised in our manifesto.
The Elective Reform Plan set out our plan to tackle the 7.5million strong waiting lists. It will mean 65% of patients will be treated within 18 weeks by the end of next year. Based on the size of the current waiting list, that would mean a fall of more than 450k people waiting more than 18 weeks for treatment.
Hospices:
We have made the biggest investment into hospices and end of life care in a generation ensuring that hospices can continue to deliver the highest quality end of life care possible for their patients, families, and loved ones.
The Government has announced a £100 million boost for adult and children’s hospices to ensure they have the best physical environment for care, and £26 million revenue to support children and young people’s hospices.
The funding will help support hospices and deliver much needed funding for improvements including refurbishments, overhauling IT systems and improving facilities for patients and visitors.
The government is committed to ensuring every person has access to high-quality end of life care and, as part of its Plan for Change is taking immediate action to rebuild the health service and deliver improved standards of care, making sure it is fit for the future.
Mental health:
After 14 years of Tory failure, we are experiencing an unprecedented crisis in mental health care, with more than a million people in need not getting the support that they require.
Approximately 1 million people were waiting for mental health services in April last year and the increase in mental ill health under the Tories is costing Britain £23 billion per year.
We are bringing forward legislation to modernise the Mental Health Act and we will recruit 8,500 mental health workers, including specialist mental health professionals in every school as well as rolling out young futures hubs in every community - all to help people back onto their feet.
Our Mental Health Bill is currently passing through Parliament and will modernise the Mental Health Act so that it is fit for the 21st century.
Pharmacies:
We will shift the focus of healthcare out of hospitals and into the community, to fix the front door to the NHS.
Moving the focus of care from hospitals into the community is one of the 3 core shifts outlined in the 10 Year Health Plan, which will be published later this year.
Community pharmacists are at the heart of local healthcare, and they have a vital role to play as we shift from hospital to community, giving patients better access to care, closer to home, through our 10 Year Health Plan.
We have inherited a sector that is suffering from years of underfunding and neglect, but we recognise the hard work pharmacists undertake every day to deliver for patients.
The government has previously outlined its ambition to make better use of pharmacists’ skills and training to deliver more services for patients within their local communities.
The Department of Health and Social Care has entered into consultation with Community Pharmacy England regarding the 2024 to 2025 and 2025 to 2026 funding contractual framework.
The government has announced a record £3bn+ funding deal, with £193 million of debt written off, to provide Hemel patients with more services at their local pharmacy, including free morning-after pill, mental health support, and easier access to prescriptions.