As part of the Start Well programme, we also developed proposals to make changes to paediatric surgery, or children’s surgical services in North Central London. These proposals were developed with input from clinicians and service managers.
The proposed changes to services aim to address the challenges identified in the case for change, to develop clearer care pathways, speed up access to emergency care, make better use of specialist staff and reduce the number of operations being cancelled.
Between December 2023 and March 2024, NHS North Central London Integrated Care Board ran a public consultation, on behalf of the local integrated care system, and NHS England (London) Specialised Commissioning, to seek views on proposals for children’s surgical services.
Full details about the proposals, including the options for consultation, and why we put them forward, as well as what this means for people who use these services, are outlined in the Start Well consultation document.
Following the public consultation phase, we published an independent consultation feedback report and an executive summary report, detailing the themes and feedback in response to the proposed changes to children’s surgical services in North Central London.
Next steps
As a result of the feedback we received, we have been completing additional work to understand if there are other implementable options that would improve care for children.
We have committed to carrying out some additional engagement with parents, service users and staff before we plan next steps. We expect that a formal decision about children’s surgery services will be made later in 2025.