I know that one of the biggest priorities for my electors in South Suffolk is the NHS. That’s why in the 2019 General Election one of my top aims was campaigning for a brand-new West Suffolk Hospital. Thus, I was delighted when it was recently announced that a complete rebuild of the Bury St Edmunds site was confirmed as a priority project within the overall programme to deliver 40 new hospitals by 2030.
There is a very good reason why we need this investment and commitment. Like me, West Suffolk Hospital came into being in 1974. Unfortunately, in the case of the hospital, it was constructed with a type of concrete known as RAAC – in essence, concrete with a limited lifespan. I visited the site at the end of May, together with my constituency neighbour Jo Churchill MP, and saw first-hand the ongoing urgent remedial work that has to be undertaken on a constant basis to keep the existing structure in order.
So, building a new hospital in West Suffolk is not an optional issue; it’s a necessity, and I’m delighted that we are going to be getting on with it in earnest. The hospital’s leadership have taken the necessary step of securing planning permission on an adjacent site, and I look forward to working with the team to ensure that we maintain progress.
Of course, when it comes to public services, education is one of the other key priorities for my constituents and this is another area of good news when it comes to investment in new buildings. Further to the very positive announcement that the Department of Education has approved a multi-million-pound investment to construct a new school building for Ormiston Academy, it was confirmed last week that the school’s new planned capacity would increase from 950 pupils to 1,050.
For obvious reasons this is good news - it provides more secondary school provision on our doorstep - but it also sends a message of ambition that bodes well. As for the next steps, although timing is approximate, it remains the case that the new building is expected to go into planning this coming winter.
That said, even with the best will in the world, big projects take time. And yes, there is inevitably a lot of focus on major new provision, like schools and hospitals - but I’m also keen to stress investment at the lowest level – the ‘grassroots’ in our community. This is particularly the case where our fantastic charities and voluntary organisations are concerned. For example, at the end of May I had the pleasure of attending the 8th birthday celebrations of the brilliant Bumblebee Children’s Charity in Sproughton, especially as I also attended their 1st birthday back in 2016. The charity has recently been awarded £75,000 of National Lottery funding to expand their sensory provision. It was great to meet their amazing staff who work hard to support very young children with complex care needs, and where their services literally make the world of difference to the families concerned.
Talking about ‘grassroots’ investment, local sport is a really important component for many communities. Yes, this week has seen a British football club achieve an extraordinary treble – including the Champions League – but as someone brought up supporting a non-league club, I find great pleasure in watching what happens at the other end of the football pyramid, where the salaries and budgets are not quite so eye watering – but the passion of fans can be just as strong. On this, it was a huge delight to watch AFC Sudbury achieve promotion in April through their 1-0 victory over Heybridge Swifts in the Isthmian League North Division Play-Off Final.
Thus, I was very pleased to see investment in our football facilities in South Suffolk through the Government’s Multi-Sport Grassroots Facilities Programme. Investment worth almost £40,000 will help improve local sports facilities, including clubs such as Lavenham Youth FC, Holbrook Hornets, and a significant upgrade to Capel St Mary’s changing rooms - enabling more people to access them.
Finally, having written many times in recent months about the cost of living: it’s been a mixed picture of late, with official inflation ‘falling’ but prices staying stubbornly high in areas like food. I do believe that we will see further improvement, but in the meantime, I hope it provides some positivity to reflect on the significant investment that we are seeing in local public services. With summer now in full swing, let us hope for further good news ahead.
Published in the Suffolk Free Press.
