100 days of silence. Our kids can't wait.
Over 100 days ago our councillors unanimously asked the Health Secretary to call in the decision to move Ormskirk's children's A&E. Whitehall still hasn't answered.
It has been more than 100 days. And still no answer.
At the end of March, Lancashire County Council's health scrutiny committee — county and district councillors from every party, together — voted unanimously to ask the Health Secretary to 'call in' the decision to move our children's A&E from Ormskirk to Southport. Our MP asked for the decision to be reversed too. Since then: silence.
We are parents. We know what silence usually means when you've asked a serious question. It means someone is hoping you'll stop asking. We won't.
The power to step in exists — it's just sitting unused
This isn't a vague plea. There is a formal legal route. Since 31 January 2024, the Health Secretary has had the power under Schedule 10A of the NHS Act 2006 — added by the Health and Care Act 2022 — to call in an NHS reconfiguration at any stage and decide it himself. And there is a dedicated body, the Independent Reconfiguration Panel, that exists precisely to advise ministers on contested changes like ours, through an initial assessment and, where needed, a full review.
The machinery is there. Our councillors pulled the lever. Whitehall has simply not responded.
Meanwhile, our own council is talking about judicial review
In April, West Lancashire Borough Council passed a motion noting "with alarm and great concern" the decision to move the children's A&E. It questioned how the consultation options were developed — remember, Southport was named the 'preferred option' before the public was asked, and keeping the A&E at Ormskirk was still the most popular answer among 7,840+ consultation responses. The council has now authorised its officers to consider every route of challenge, up to and including judicial review.
Think about that. A local council is weighing up taking the NHS to court over how this was done. That is not what a sound, well-evidenced decision looks like.
Every day of silence is a day closer to diggers
The £33 million move is targeted for 2029, with work spanning at least three years. Delay suits the decision-makers: the longer the call-in sits unanswered, the closer this gets to being presented as a done deal. Our kids' A&E — open 8am to midnight at a hospital that is 10–20 minutes closer than Southport to the specialists at Alder Hey, Whiston and Aintree — deserves an actual answer, not a shrug.
To be clear, our fight is not with the brilliant doctors and nurses at Ormskirk. It is with the people who ignored a consultation and are now ignoring the call-in too.
What we're asking for
One thing. The Health Secretary must formally respond to the call-in request and call in this decision before any contract is signed or any work begins. The law gives him the power. Over 100 days on, we're still waiting for him to use it.
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