Concern at plans to slash almost £7m from public health budget
A group of organisations are calling for a rethink in Hampshire
Concerns have been raised over plans to cut public health services in Hampshire.
Hampshire County Council is looking to cut almost £7m from its public health budget, with sexual health, substance abuse treatment, 0-19 nursing (including school nursing) and anti-smoking campaigns are all set to see funding slashed.
Now, a consortium of organisations advocating for women’s health have written to the county council, calling for a rethink of the budget cuts.
Gill Walton, chief executive of the Royal College of Midwives, said: ‘The proposals introduce unacceptable risks which will cause preventable harm and widen inequalities.
‘As collaborative organisations with a shared aim to ensure the best outcomes for mothers and babies, we are extremely worried that service cuts in one part of the health care system will inevitably have a significant knock-on impact on other parts of the system, including maternity services which cannot be ignored.
'Hampshire County Council is not alone in facing these very challenging decisions and considerations'
‘A sustainable national solution is urgently needed to ensure that all babies, children, and families have access to an effective health visiting service as part of a fully funded national healthy child programme, regardless of where they live – this is too important to be left to chance.’
The consortium, which also includes Sands and NCT, has suggested that the county council should prioritise public health work with children and families, with a specific protection of the health visiting service.
Leader of Hampshire County Council, Cllr Keith Mans, has previously spoken about how the current funding system from central government is ‘not sustainable’.
He has also ackowledged the difficulty of decisions lying ahead for the council.
Cllr Mans said: ‘We are looking at the priorities and what we need to shift – but the fact is if you reduce funding in any area you’re inevitably going to get concerns.
‘What we need to do is provide the best services we can, using the funding we’ve got available.
‘I would like to see the public health funding increased at the same rate as the funding for the NHS. That would be the ideal solution.’
The public consultation period concluded on August 9.