East Devon Conservatives in Community Hospital Betrayal

When the NHS quango, the NEW Devon Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG), decided to scrap half Eastern Devon’s community hospital beds in 2017, East Devon’s Conservatives refused to stand up for the hospitals in Seaton, Honiton and Okehampton which would lose their beds. Indeed Hugo Swire MP - despite having formerly represented Seaton - called for Seaton to lose its beds in favour of his new patch in Sidmouth, and the...

When is an asset of community value not an asset?

When East Devon District Council makes decisions regarding requests to have Community Hospitals registered as community assets – that’s when! The latest such decision by EDDC relates to Seaton Hospital. As a Town Councillor, I got a resolution agreed by Seaton Town Council last year to make a request to East Devon District Council to register Seaton Hospital as an asset of community value. If registered, and in the event of...

Scaring the Living Daylights Out of People

Although you wouldn't know it if you are watching the feeble journalism of BBC Spotlight, ITV West Country News or the Midweek Herald, East Devon Council's notoriety for bad practice has been known at a national level for years. In this report, written by the leading national governance and housing journalist Anna Minton, East Devon has its own special section - right up there with some of the worst in...

Seaton Hospital – what’s happening

Many of you may be wondering what’s happening with Seaton Hospital, especially following the closure of the in-patient beds in late 2017. As a result of the bed closures, 38% of the space in the building is empty. NHS Property Services own the site and charge occupiers, including the NHS who run 50 clinics and the Health & Social Care Team, for the remaining space and underwrite the costs of...