Experts backed new hospital on current site in 70-page report

  • 70-page expert review report said A NEW HOSPITAL ON PART OF CURRENT HEMEL HOSPITAL SITE would be best option for future of NHS in Dacorum
  • The report - the last independent review of sites - which lasted from 2016 to 2017 - was commissioned and paid for by Dacorum Council and the NHS
  • Three top expert companies agreed the report
  • The Council and the NHS have now DESTROYED the report
  • BUT key parts of the report have been passed to Dacorum Health Action Group
  • The report says a site on corner of King Harry Street and Hillfield Road would:
  1. be 'flexible to meet future demands and new services'
  2. allow 'sufficient parking area and easy access from King Harry Street and Hillfield Road'
  3. 'maximise the potential of the [Hospital] site with a new build development in one of the most accessible parts of the site'
  • Despite the clear expert verdict, the Council and NHS press on with the Market Square site - rated ninth equal out of ten options in a later report

by philip

Bad news for Hospital closure backers as our campaign surges

  • Politicians aiming to close Hemel Hospital get bad news today
  • New Hospital Campaign/DHAG Facebook Group is growing fast
  • Record numbers are joining the Group - 43 new members in just the last week
  • Many joiners seem to be concerned at the plans to close Hermel Hospital and build a Hub instead
  • What can YOU do to push back against the closure crew?
  • ASK YOUR COUNCILLOR TO SAY 'NO' TO CLOSURE.
  • AND NO TO PLANS FOR THE MARKET SQUARE HUB.
  • You can make a difference. The Dacorum elections are set for May 2027, but we should start NOW demanding action to save our Hospital and build a new facility there.
  • Here is a hint: some Council wards had a very low turnout at the last elections in 2023.
  • Voters in those wards where turnout was low should exploit the chance to should get active and tell their councillors what they think of the closure plan.
  • These are the five Dacorum wards with the lowest %age turnout 2023 - where a bigger turnout could threaten a surprise result:
  • Highfield 20.51%
  • Adeyfield East 22.13%
  • Adeyfield West 22.71%
  • Grovehill 23%
  • Woodhall Farm 23.07%

by philip

Secret Hospital closure pact does not follow the rules, Council admits

  • Council in secret agreement with NHS Trust over Hospital closure.
  • Dacorum Council WON'T SAY what is in 'Memorandum of Understanding' (MoU) with the NHS.
  • The secret pact was 'drafted but not signed', probably in 2024. 
  • Council says it has been 'working to the principles of the drafted MoU' in planning the closure of the Hospital and its replacement by a Market Square 'health centre' 
  • The MoU is 'not legally binding' - but the Council and NHS are following it anyway 
  • The Council has admitted to a DHAG member that the MoU 'sits outside the governance structures' of both the Council and NHS bodies
  • WHY ARE COUNCILLORS NOT WILLING TO SAY WHAT IS IN THIS KEY AGREEMENT?
  • WHY DOES THE AGREEMENT NOT FOLLOW THE NORMAL RULES GOVERNING THESE PUBLIC BODIES?
  • WHY ARE THE HOSPITAL CLOSURE 'PARTNERS' FOLLOWING THE MOU WITHOUT SIGNING IT?

by philip

Council admits we had no say in Hospital closure decision - full letter

  • Attached is the full response by a Dacorum Council officer to an FOI request about consultation on the closure of Hemel Hospital
  • It makes clear that:
  1. The 'engagement' public sessions held earlier this year were ONLY to 'gather views on the overall vision and model of care'.
  2. So the decision to clear the Hospital site and build a Market Square Hub instead was taken WITHOUT PUBLIC ENGAGEMENT 
  3. The size of the main NHS facility in Dacorum will be reduced from 18 acres to just 1.3 acres 
  4. This will severely limit future development of local healthcare facilities for the 160,000 people of Dacorum
  5. There will be no further work on any other option.
  6. The current Hemel Hospital site will be available for 450 or more flats.
  7. The Council claims that ANY public discussion of the factors behind the closure decision would be against its 'commercial interests'

Click below for the full response:

FOI Response 1 Dec 2025

by philip

Council admits public had NO SAY in Hospital closure decision

  • Dacorum Council ADMIT public were deliberately cut out of decision on Hemel Hospital closure
  • They say 'Engagement' public sessions in the summer were just to 'gather views on the overall vision'
  • This makes clear that the Prime Minister's promise (to David Taylor MP) of public consultation has been ignored
  • Decision to make the closure the 'preferred way forward' was taken in private in May 2025 by UNELECTED Council and NHS bureaucrats, the 'Joint Strategic Board'.
  • The final decision to replace the Hospital with a Hub was confirmed in 'private session' of some councillors last month.
  • The Council said in an FOI response last week that
  • The purpose of the ['engagement'] sessions was to gather views on the overall vision and model of care, rather than to consult formally on a single preferred site.

by philip

Has the NHS had second thoughts over Hemel Hospital closure?

  • Has the NHS got cold feet over Hemel Hospital closure?
  • Closure plan was not on the agenda at key NHS meeting last week
  • The closure plan for Hemel Hospital was originally down for approval by the regional NHS ICB Board meeting which took place on 28 November. 
  • This would be a crucial step towards the shuttering of the 200-year-old institution
  • BUT THE PLAN FOR THE DEMOLITION OF THE HOSPITAL AND ITS REPLACEMENT BY A MARKET SQUARE HUB OR 'NEIGHBOURHOOD' HEALTH CENTRE WAS NOT ON THE AGENDA AS PUBLISHED
  • Has the NHS decided to rethink its plan to turn Hemel and Dacorum into a neighbourhood?
  • OR - WAS THE CRUCIAL DECISION TAKEN IN SECRECY (PART TWO OF THE MEETING) AND NOT MADE PUBLIC? 
  • Dacorum Health Action Group has put in a Freedom of Information request to find out what happened

by philip

Council says 'commercial interests' mean reasons for Hospital closure must remain hidden

  • Real reasons for Hospital closure decision kept secret to protect 'commercial interests' of West Herts Trust and Dacorum Council
  • A member of Dacorum Health Action Group has been REFUSED answers to an FOI request about why the Council wants the Hospital is to be closed 
  • Official claimed reasons behind Hemel Hospital closure decision must be kept secret by Dacorum councillors 'as disclosure would be prejudicial to the commercial interests of the Council and its partners.'
  • This information 'remains commercially sensitive and cannot be shared' according to the official
  • Council response said: 'Option 4 - Market Square - was identified as the preferred way forward because of:
  • the site’s ease of access,
  • its alignment with the neighbourhood model of care,
  • and its potential to support the future regeneration of the town centre. 
  • Nonsense ....
  • The Market Square was rated JOINT NINTH out of ten options in the last independent expert survey on similar measures 
  • WHAT LIES BEHIND THIS NHS AND COUNCIL SECRECY?
  • WHY ARE OUR COUNCILLORS SO KEEN TO SHUT OUR HOSPITAL WITHOUT TELLING US WHY?

 

by philip

Revealed - experts backed new building on Hemel Hospital site

  • Report by three top independent firms backed state-of-the-art new local hospital building on Hemel Hospital site
  • Expert report written the last time Hemel's hospital future was considered, between 2016 and 2018.
  • At that time, Council and NHS rated Market Square site joint NINTH OUT OF TEN options
  • Dacorum Council and NHS may have deleted or destroyed the expert report, which they helped to pay for - they claim they don't have it
  • BUT PARTS OF THE EXPERT REPORT HAVE NOW BEEN HANDED TO DACORUM HEALTH ACTION GROUP
  • Report assesses the site for a local hospital with services very similar to the planned 'Hemel Health Campus' 
  • Priorities would be prevention, integration and care closer to home
  • Experts said the 'optimum proposal' for a  new local hospital on the current site was on the northwestern edge, because it:
  • Was 'Close to the town centre'
  • 'Allows for sufficient parking and easy access from King Harry Street and Hillfield Road'
  • Was 'flexible to meet future demands and new services' 
  • 'Optimises the value of the [current Hospital] land'
  • The report assumed the rest of the current Hospital site would be used for housing to meet Government targets, and a school

 

by philip

No discussion as NHS bosses confirm Hemel Hospital closure decision

  • West Herts NHS Trust bosses confirmed yesterday that they will seek the closure of Hemel Hospital and its replacement with a Market Square Hub
  • There was NO DISCUSSION at the Trust Board meeting which in  a few minutes approved a business case for the £134.8m project
  • The only public information was in 15 slides with no financial figures and no details on options such as the use of the current site
  • The promotional  'engagement' sessions did not discuss options and provided no financial information on the Hub
  • Just over three years ago, the same Trust provided 183 pages of background information on the various options for Watford General, including full and detailed responses from the public
  • THE TRUST TAKE WATFORD SERIOUSLY. WHEN IT COMES TO DACORUM, THEY ARE JUST PR PEOPLE. DACORUM COUNCIL ARE SUPPORTING THEM IN THEIR COVER UP.
  • These are the May 2022 West Herts Trust board papers on the Watford General project (pages 7 to 190):
  • https://www.westhertshospitals.nhs.uk/application/files/7117/3677/6007/May_2022_board_papers2.pdf

by philip

We are consulted on waste recycling centres - but not on the Hospital

  • Herts County Council are consulting the public on changes to the way waste recycling centres are run 
  • A range of options are available for the public to say which policy they favour
  • BUT DACORUM AND THE NHS ARE GOING AHEAD WITH THE CLOSURE OF HEMEL HOSPITAL - WITHOUT CONSULTATION
  • Keir Starmer promised David Taylor MP in June that there would be public consultation
  • But the authorities decided to ignore the PM's pledge and move to closure 
  • No options are offered beyond the cramped and expensive Hub on Market Square
  • The promotional material for the Hub on the Dacorum website gives the game away:
  • "we’ll be seeking your feedback and thoughts on the health campus to shape our thinking and approach – and would value your views on this option. This will then be considered against other alternatives in the Strategic Outline Case."
  • This is the arrogant policy of TAKE OR LEAVE IT

by philip